COLOUR
DECEMBER 2025
BEST IN SHOW
JAY JOHANSEN
** SAPPHIRE ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2024**
* THE SILENCE SHE WORE *
Acrylic
“My art explores identity, emotion and legacy. Through portraits I capture not just likeness but essence, using bold palettes and textures to evoke nostalgia, intrigue and reflection inviting viewers to connect with deeper stories. Legacy, history & experience — that’s what makes the story telling, by way of oil & acrylic mediums — approachable, relevant & enduring.” — JAY JOHANSEN
DIAMOND AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
NIKOLA GOCIC
* A MYTHICAL IDENTITY *
Digital collage
“The Loneliest of Gods Glistening in all the colors of acidic emanations, they woke up at the dawn of the Über-End. Initially, their skin resembled that of humans, but as soon as you touched them, it would turn ashen... or was it violet? They only had the power of transmutation or so we thought in our ignorance and Silence was their modus operandi. Pre-existing in the past, and expecting no future, they could not age at all – no term for ‘death’ ever appeared in the symbols they drew in thin air. And one day, when we least expected, they just fell asleep again, the triangle of oblivion and the circle of eternity floating on a cloud above their Dream.” — NIKOLA GOCIC
DIAMOND AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
GABRIELE GRACINE
**EMERALD ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2021**
RUBY AWARD
NETTA GANOR
* SUN IS RISING AGAIN *
By courtesy of The Association Of Mouth And Foot Painting Artists Worldwide
Oil
“Painting is where I find my independence. Without the use of my hands, the brush in my mouth is like an extension of myself, allowing me to transcend physical confines. My paintings are rooted in realism, yet I use colors that carry emotion and meaning, creating images that are personally interpretive. Through saturated hues, my work reflects an optimistic outlook and a belief in living fully despite limitations. Whether depicting human connection, emotions, natural surroundings or the quiet significance of objects, my goal is to make paintings that are faithful yet personal and to challenge perceptions of disability showing that life with limitations can be full, rich and meaningful.” — NETTA GANOR
SAPPHIRE AWARD
JOHN DIEPHOUSE
**RUBY ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2024**
**CRYSTAL ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2023**
* FANTASTIC VOYAGE *
Digital collage
“I'm a self-taught photographer and digital collage artist and am attracted to a variety of subjects, from natural landscapes, botanicals and wildlife to images that provide either abstract expression or social commentary. I'm interested in sharing images that evoke a story of some kind.
Images may be simply documentary, reflect a sense of time and place or resonate on a more abstract level of color, shape or form. Others provoke an indefinable question that does not readily yield answers without further study and reflection.” — JOHN DIEPHOUSE
EMERALD AWARD
A. DEBRA REICH SCHWALM
* LONE BOAT AT SUNSET *
Watercolour batik
“Capturing the light is everything! I love the journey for the next inspiring image and how I can interpret, embellish and re-invent it. I love nature and live in a very rural area of Arizona. When I choose an image, I first observe the drama of the light, color, shadow and reflection. I assess the image by the story or message and how it will look in the batik style. The WATERCOLOR BATIK ON MULBERRY PAPER method is a loose painting technique using watercolor and melted wax as a resist on a tissue thin paper. It emphasizes an energetic texture and a bit of whimsy. The process involves alternating layers of watercolor and wax and there is a progression from light to dark values, each time adding wax to reserve the area after it dried. Once the layering process is complete, the wax is removed and the final art piece is revealed.”
— A. DEBRA REICH SCHWALM
CRYSTAL AWARD
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AWARD OF MERIT
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HONOURABLE MENTION
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FINALISTS
**WINNERS VIDEO**