Winners of HKU Awards 2025 revealed

18 september 2025

The winners of the HKU Awards 2025, for the best graduation works, have been revealed yesterday during the opening celebration of the new academic year in TivoliVredenburg. Utrecht’s city councillor for Culture, Eva Oosters, also handed out the HKU Utrecht City Prize to Sohna Sumbunu. The three HKU Awards went to Anne Cappendijk, Uliana Gromyko and Iyanla Etnel, along with a sum of 5000 euros.

Each year, HKU hands out three awards for students who graduated that academic year in a bachelor’s or master’s programme at HKU. The jury consists of renowned professionals from the world of arts. This year they chose (Illustration), Uliana Gromyko (Graphic Design) and Iyanla Etnel (Photography).

Utrecht City Prize 2025

Next to the three HKU Awards, a fourth winner is selected among the nominated students for the HKU Utrecht City Prize. This prize emphasises the importance of art and culture for the city of Utrecht and its inhabitants, promoting the city’s cultural diversity and creative development. This year, the prize was handed to (Film) by Eva Oosters, councillor of Culture.

The jury had this to say about the winners:

Anne Cappendijk – Mourning Traffic
HKU Media – Illustration
‘Anne’s illustrative language connects personal experience with universal themes. Her installation symbolises the complexity of mourning, while showing how art can create room for that which would otherwise remain unsaid.’

Uliana Gromyko – ERROR: CONNECTION LOST
HKU Media - Graphic Design
‘Uliana’s work is not just a protest against the established software monopolies, but also an ode to personal autonomy and creative freedom. Through this, she sets a new standard for both maker and medium.’

Iyanla Etnel – Kari Den Fowru Na Oso
HKU Media – Photography
‘Iyanla’s work is highly personal, yet resonates universally. Her style is poetic, precise and respectful. This work entices to slow down, to see with different eyes, and manages to deeply touch the audience without imposing.’

Sohna Sumbunu – CODESWITCH
HKU Media – Film
‘Sharp observations and a warm direction allow Sohna to show how rich, complex and valuable it is to move in between different worlds. The film is not just a celebration of diversity; it makes it tangible and visible, spurring towards both empathy and connection.’

See the works, the full jury reports and all other nominees en of the HKU Awards 2025 on this page.

The jury
During the HKU graduation festival Exposure, the jury reviews all nominated works, with the HKU profile in mind. Their judgement is based on the artistic quality, excellence, artisanship, innovation, creativity, applicability and interdisciplinarity of the works.

The members of the jury:
Femke Rotteveel (Fotodok) – Chair
Carolien de Boer (Utrecht local government)
Nonna Hoogland (alumnus, artist)
Ralph Keuning (art historian)
Eppo van Nispen tot Sevenaer (Beeld en Geluid)
Xavier Vandamme (Oude Muziek)
Margriet Vollenberg (Organisation in Design)