Art competition winners named, 2025 edition announced

Two incredible artworks, Natalya Nduta’s painting and Seth Kabacho’s drawings, were among the top winners of the Live Free Art Competition by Jubilee Life Insurance.

Natalya and Seth (Pictured) are two of ten talented young artists who have each earned full secondary school scholarships, a prize valued at a total of Sh3 million.

Natalya Nduta’s painting shows a young girl climbing up a ladder towards a dark blue night sky. Around her is a galaxy of stars and a yellow-orange moon. Titling it ‘Reaching for the Stars’, the piece of art aimed to capture Natalya’s limitless dreams.

“We are told that the sky is the limit, but beyond the sky, we have the stars,” says Natalya.

Seth Kabacho’s drawings are about a child in a village called Kibo. Even as he lives in poverty, he never gives up. He excels in school and he becomes a doctor.

Under the theme ‘Dreams Without Limits’, the competition had the pupils express their ambitions and thoughts. The materials that they mainly used were watercolours, coloured pencils, crayons, charcoal and ink.

The ten artists emerged as winners from 13,000 submissions received from 26 counties, with 90 young learners from the special needs category last year.

The winners are Amelia Blessing, Natalya Nduta, Michelle Wanjiru, Neria Baraka, Amalia Awuor, Jennel Nhechi, Seth Kabacho, Marshall Machana, Mikaela Mzima and Tasneda Muhonja.

Since its launch in 2017, the competition has attracted a total of 50,000 participants across 47 counties. The competition accepts original artworks in various mediums like painting, drawing, collage or mixed media from pupils between Grade One and Grade Four.

During the awarding ceremony at the Jubilee Life Insurance head office in Nairobi, the judging team, led by Linda Maseno, commended the artists for crafting breathtaking and thoughtful pieces.

Jubilee Life Insurance CEO Asman Mugambi shared that the competition has turned into a space that celebrates different creative expressions, instils lifelong values in children and empowers communities.

Jubilee Holdings Limited Group Chair Zul Abdul said the art competition is both an art showcase and an investment in creative thinking for young learners. The Group hopes to expand the competition to other various forms of art like acting, sculpting, and music.

“Every brushstroke and every pencil line is a piece of your heart,” he addressed the participants.

The open call for the 2025 Live Free Art Competition also kicked off, with young people asked to create and submit their artworks under the theme ‘Art of Saving’. The artworks are supposed to be on paper, A2 size or smaller.

Participants are advised not to create images of renowned personalities. And the final pieces are required to be submitted by hand delivery or through courier services to the Jubilee Life Insurance head office by July 20, 2025.