The Golla Gallery in Addis Ababa launched an exhibition featuring the finalists and winners of the 2025 African Women in Art Award (AWAA). The project is organized in collaboration with the World Peoples Assembly, the “Her Voice” Foundation, and the I-A Gallery of Contemporary African Art.
The exhibition showcases works by artists from six countries: Angola, Rwanda, Zambia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Namibia. Its central theme, “Initiation,” transcends traditional anthropological and ritual interpretations associated with the award.
Here, initiation is viewed as a process of internal transformation: transitioning from one state to another, moving from socially assigned roles to personal choices, and reflecting on lived experiences. The concept may manifest as coming of age, professional self-discovery, overcoming trauma, or moments of inner rupture. The artworks explore how identity is formed as a fluid and deeply personal journey rather than a fixed condition.
Krista Uvaze, the winner in the Mixed Visual Media category, expressed her thoughts, noting “This is a unique opportunity for women artists to present their work beyond their home countries. This year’s theme, ‘Initiation,’ allowed me to show works that would have been difficult to present in another context.”
The AWAA is evolving into a professional platform that empowers women artists by providing access to international exhibitions, collaborations, and institutional recognition. It is rooted in the principles of cultural dialogue, gender equality, and expanding opportunities for women whose contributions are often underrepresented in the global art scene.
The project is supported by the “Her Voice” Foundation, registered in Zambia, which integrates cultural initiatives with educational and social programs across Africa. Currently, the foundation aids over 200 girls by ensuring access to education, with a total program participation exceeding 950 individuals.
Among the exhibiting artists is Ethiopian painter Selamawit Gebretsadik, whose work is influenced by her background in social work. Her compositions blur the boundaries between human figures, plant forms, and landscapes, creating a cohesive visual field where figures relate to their surroundings. Recurrent leaf motifs serve as gestures, bodies, and markers of memory and time, creating a rich, rhythmic pictorial space. Her work brings together Ethiopian visual traditions with elements of European modernism, resulting in a uniquely personal painterly style.
The exhibition is part of a larger cultural program leading up to the World Public Summit Africa, scheduled to take place in Addis Ababa on July 30, under the theme “A New World: Africa in Shaping a Shared Future.”
“Such concrete initiatives, those that create real opportunities and elevate the international recognition of African women artists, are an important step in preparing for the gathering of leaders from non-profit sectors, as well as public and cultural diplomacy, in Addis Ababa in July 2026,” stated Yanina Dubeykovskaya, Deputy Executive Director of the World Peoples Assembly, founder of the AWAA, and Trustee of the “Her Voice” Foundation.
The upcoming summit aims to serve as a platform for rethinking international cooperation, emphasizing shared responsibility for the future, respect for cultural values, and dialogue across societies. Its agenda focuses on building trust among nations, advancing a humanitarian framework for contemporary civilization, and developing new models of international communication.
In this context, the AWAA exhibition represents not only the culmination of an art award but also an independent statement on the role of culture in shaping a shared future through personal narratives, visual language, and experiences that transcend borders and contexts.
