Last night the City of Subiaco announced the winners of the prestigious 2025 Shaun Tan Award for Young Artists.
Raadin Ebadi from Perth Modern School won first place in the Upper Secondary category with his piece
Future Serenity, which the judges described as “subtle, beautiful, and skilfully rendered."
Jasper Lindon from John Curtin College won the Lower Secondary category with his artwork
Father’s Portrait, “an honest and charming portrait with a refined colour palette”.
The winners from the Primary aged categories were Tanya Ziya Xu from St Columba's Catholic Primary School for
Moonlight over the Lotus Pond, Eason Li from Arty Studio WA for
Peekaboo and Diarmuid Gannon from Bannister Creek Primary School for
A Lion Who Wants a Friend.
The competition’s patron for the last 23 years, Oscar-winning author, illustrator and filmmaker Shaun Tan, pre-recorded a special video message for the event where he shared his painting and drawing progression from childhood, showing some of his first artworks where he used images to tell stories and create dynamic worlds.
Shaun commented on the “sheer range, liveliness, colour, diversity and technical skill on show” and that people would be “hard pressed to find any art show with this much diversity of subject and style and sheer energy”.
He commended the finalists on their work and said there was “so much for adult artists to learn from looking at the art of our younger peers”.
Mayor David McMullen, who spoke at the awards presentation, highlighted the City’s longstanding commitment to nurturing the next generation of artists.
“This is the 23
rd year the City has hosted this prestigious award for young artists. I’d like to congratulate the deserving winners, and all of the talented artists who submitted their pieces, on their imaginative creations.
“There is one final award up for grabs, the People’s Choice Award, which you can vote for online or by visiting the exhibition in person at Subiaco Library.”
The winning artworks were selected by a panel of judges made up of artists and illustrators. The awards are supported by sponsors Kool Kreative, Jacksons Drawing Supplies, Dymocks Subiaco, Mirage Digital, Creative Kids Arts Club and Janet Holmes à Court AC.
The exhibition can be viewed at Subiaco Library until Sunday 3 August, or online
via this link.