Pretoria artists shine at Sasol New Signatures as merit award winners
Rebecca Glass and Vian Roos earned merit awards at the 2025 Sasol New Signatures Visual Arts Competition. Their innovative works, alongside winner Juandré van Eck’s ceramic piece, will be showcased at the Pretoria Art Museum from September to November, celebrating fresh South African artistic talent.
Two Pretoria artists, Rebecca Glass and Vian Roos, are among the merit award winners of the 2025 Sasol New Signatures Visual Arts Competition.
The 25-year-old Juandré van Eck, an Honours student from the Nelson Mandela University in Gqeberha, was announced on September 3 as the winner for his ceramic piece titled Cycles of the Mind.
Van Eck, a merit winner in 2024, takes home a cash prize of R100 000 and an opportunity to hold a solo exhibition at the Pretoria Art Museum in 2026.
He explained about his work that the ceramic artwork emulates the rhythmic patterns of breath.
“Two whistles positioned on opposite sides speak, one a cry of liberation and joy, the other a low, gentle echo of contemplation and unseen turmoil. Water, the essence of life, gives life to this artwork, offering it a voice through its gentle flow from one state to the next. It provides comfort and the promise that even in the darkest moment, hope can rise, a whisper becoming a triumphant cry of defiance,” said Van Eck.
Rebecca Glass won the merit prize with her etching titled Sell-Fish.
She said this etching also responds to a transitional period in her own life, in which inherited roles as a child, a daughter, and a member of society begin to dissolve or shift.
“Recent political upheavals underscore this instability, intensifying the sense of displacement. Ultimately, the artist must inhabit a state of dual perception: to draw from lived experience while simultaneously stepping outside it, observing with detachment. In this way, the self becomes both subject and witness, caught in the net of one’s own creation,” explained Glass.
Roos merit award artwork titled 2916 comprised of 2 916 individually crafted tassels made from cotton thread and arranged in a 54 by 54 grid. He explained that the work focuses on the experience of repetition, tactile labour, and resistance to automation.
Each tassel was handmade by a process involving spinning the threads, cutting, tying, combing, attaching hooks, fastening to the board, and trimming to achieve neatness.
“This repetitive, almost meditative process mirrors the rhythm of industrial labour and the monotony of factory work, yet the human touch introduces subtle variations and imperfections into each element,” said Roos.
Roos holds an MA in Design (Distinction) from the London School of Design and Marketing, where his research explored the visual representation and interaction of South African cultural food on digital platforms.
He is a graphic design lecturer and design researcher. Beyond academia, he has worked as a graphic designer and art director for creative agencies, publications, and corporate brands.
The other three Merit Award winners are Tammy Baikie from Johannesburg, Snelihle Asanda Maphumulo and Sarah Volker, both from Gqeberha.
Christian Herrmann, Sasol executive vice president of marketing, said that his company’s deepest appreciation goes to the Association of Arts Pretoria for their unwavering dedication and hard work, as well as to their partners, the Tshwane metro, the Pretoria Art Museum, and Stuttaford Van Lines.
“Together, we continue to champion the vibrant artistic talent that defines our nation. To all the artists who supported the competition by submitting works, thank you for contributing to the legacy of Sasol New Signatures. Congratulations to the winners, your names will forever be part of the history of this competition,” said Herrmann.
This year saw a total of 903 entries submitted at eight collection points across South Africa, with 106 works selected to advance to the final round of judging and to appear in the 2025 exhibition at the Pretoria Art Museum.
– The Sasol New Signatures exhibition, featuring the work of the 2025 winners and finalists, will take place at the Pretoria Art Museum (corner of Francis Baard and Wessels Street, Arcadia Park, Pretoria) from September 4 to November 2. Museum Hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00–17:00; closed on Mondays and public holidays.
– Rebecca Glass on her work:
@sasolltd Rebecca Louise (Beck) Glass is a 2025 #SasolNewSignatures visual arts competition Merit Winner with her etching ‘Sell – Fish’. This etching explores the complex duality of being both the creator and the product within an artistic career. The 2025 Sasol New Signatures exhibition is now open at the Pretoria Art Museum and runs until 2 November 2025
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