Our Judges

Meet the Judges

To keep the Awards fair and transparent, we use independent judges to assess each Artwork. The competition places equal emphasis on the three criteria:

Creative expression of the theme;
Originality of the idea and;
Originality in representing children and youth rights with climate change.

The judges are therefore asked to judge the entries based on these three criteria. In order to judge three criteria fairly and decide on the winning art work, our regional panel is comprised of three judges.

Mr. Robert Au Nama

President - Artist Association of the Solomon Islands

Robert studied in the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Australia and has held various position with the
government, the tourism industry, and is now with and working for the Public sector Trade Union in the Solomon Islands. By profession he is an Artists and does graphics design , and both Oil and Water painting.
He is a founding member of the Artists Association of Solomon Islands and currently the President of the Artists Association of Solomon Islands. Robert has also been involved in a number of art exhibitions including a youth art exhibition.

Mr. Guillaume Soulard

Director

Tjibaou Cultural Centre

Coming from France with diplomas in Cultural and Artistic management Guillaume Soulard arrive in New-Caledonia in 1998 when he was appointed as the head of the department of Performing Arts at the Tjibaou Cultural Centre and held that position until 2002. Since 2012 he has the position of Artistic and Cultural Director of the Tjibaou Cultural Centre. He has in charge to build and promote every artistic seasons (theater, dance, contemporary art, concert, exhibition… ), by inviting international artists, and producing local creators. His aim is to maintain this cultural center as a high place in the cultural landscape of New-Caledonia and the Pacific region.

Dr. Frances C. Koya-Vaka’uta

Director

Oceania Center for Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies - The University of the South Pacific

Dr Frances C. Koya Vaka’uta is Director of the Oceania Center for Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies and the Pacific Heritage Hub, a UNESCO Project, at the Faculty of Arts, Law & Education, University of the South Pacific (USP) in Suva. A teacher by profession, she has worked in the area of teacher education, curriculum development, education in small island states and education for sustainable development at USP for twenty years. With a passion for the arts and culture, she has been an active participant in national and regional community and policy development for over 15 years. A poet and artist, Frances explores art activism under the pseudonym “1angrynative”. Her work is inspired by Pacific island heritage and contemporary issues in the islands.