Village raised stamp and ink artist Lerato Nkosi wins inaugural ANNA fine art award
Nkosi receives R100,000 cash, a one-month residency at PLAAS #inplaasvan in Franschhoek, South Africa among other prizes.
By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor
Visual artist Lerato Nkosi from Mpumalanga who works in stamp and ink medium has triumphed in the inaugural ANNA-Latitudes Online fine art completion. The Swalala Village, Mpumalanga raised fashion and design graduate from Tshwane University of Technology beat 11 other young women artists to the rich prize that comes with a whopping R100 00 cash prize. The award is only open to emerging female artists from South Africa.
The winner was chosen on August 9, Women’s Day, but the identity of the winner was only revealed yesterday, Tuesday, August 10, 2022 in Johannesburg.
“Latitudes Online and ANNA Pure Organic are proud to announce that Lerato Nkosi is the winner of the 2022 ANNA Award. As the winner of the prize, Lerato receives R100,000 cash, a one-month residency at PLAAS #inplaasvan in Franschhoek, South Africa, a profile on Latitudes Online, and a year’s supply of ANNA products. The winner was chosen from among the 12 finalists by the ANNA selection committee: Makgati Molebatsi – Arts advisor, Curator and Senior Art Specialist, Aspire Art Auctions, Refiloe Mpakanyane – Weekend breakfast host, 702, Candice Chirwa – menstruation activist, speaker, and academic, Marianne Fassler- Fashion Designer, Leopard Frock, Jo-Ann Strauss – South African model, public speaker and businesswoman and Nina Carew – Curator, Latitudes. Finalist Sinalo Ngcaba is the winner of the Audience Award, for which Latitudes received 2767 votes from the public,” the organisers said in a statement.
About Lerato Nkosi
Lerato Nkosi ( b. 1993, Mpumalanga, South Africa; lives and works in Johannesburg ). Drawing from her experiences as a young girl growing up in a sheltered world that was created for her by her predecessors, she has developed a dynamic practice that examines the intricacies of existing in the world as a woman with the awareness that the teachings are impacting and affecting her existence. Her work employs ink and stamps as a vital, organic, multifaceted material. For Nkosi ink and stamps are mediums that stain and certify with their contact on any surface, these materials are those that never leave a surface the same after being in contact with it. The stamp and ink is always used to verify and ordain documents of importance which grants the holder automatic approval to the decision of others, this process is always handled by an individual of authority. The teachings of parents onto the girl child is embedded in and never leaves her the same as she previously was, with the ideas that whatsoever has been stamped and inked upon her is approved. The medium tempers heavier subjects that are faced in societies regarding the expectations of a woman. Investigating the medium allows Nkosi to overcome her daily conundrums and escape the victim mentality.
For Juanita Kotzé, Creative Director of ANNA – Pure Organic Pads and Liners – South Africa’s first locally produced, environmentally friendly sanitary range, the launch of this award is the next step in ANNA’s mission to embolden and empower women. “ANNA is about liberation, belonging, sustainability and truth, and I can’t think of a better way to share and express this ethos than through the creation and celebration of art.”
Lucy MacGarry, co-founder of Latitudes, the fastest-growing online platform dedicated to art from Africa, explains that the ANNA Award celebrates women artists who show extraordinary originality, imagination and dedication in their creative careers. “The ANNA Award is designed to give space to women’s stories through the medium of visual art, and we’re looking forward to the award becoming an important annual event in the world of contemporary art on the continent,” she adds.