Soheila Sokhanvari Wins £50,000 Juda Art Foundation Grant; London Design Medals and Edinburgh Comedy Awards Announced
Soheila Sokhanvari, an Iranian-British artist, has been awarded the prestigious David and Yuko Juda Art Foundation Grant of £50,000 for 2026. Her artistic focus revolves around themes of memory and identity, employing egg tempera techniques on calf vellum. Olivia Sterling was recognized with a £10,000 grant for her thought-provoking work related to race, class, and gender. The selection panel, led by Alyce Mahon, also included artists such as Laia Abril and Niamh O'Malley. An exhibition showcasing the shortlisted artworks is open at Annely Juda Fine Art until September 19. Additionally, the 2026 London Design Medals honored several designers, including Jonathan Anderson.
Key facts
- Soheila Sokhanvari received the £50,000 David and Yuko Juda Art Foundation Grant for 2026.
- Olivia Sterling was awarded a second grant of £10,000.
- The 2026 shortlist included Laia Abril, Aziza Kadyri, Amak Mahmoodian, Niamh O’Malley and Ro Robertson, selected by Alyce Mahon of the University of Cambridge.
- The exhibition of shortlisted artists and winners is at Annely Juda Fine Art’s Hanover Square gallery in London until 19 September.
- Jonathan Anderson, Anab Jain, Solveiga Pakštaitė and Sir Christopher Frayling received 2026 London Design Medals.
- The 2026 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction longlist has 13 books; the shortlist is published on 1 October and the winner announced on 4 November.
- The Theatres Trust launched the Great British Theatres Awards for its 50th anniversary, with @sohoplace a finalist in the Great New Build category from over 200 nominations.
- Chris Cantrill and Marty Gleeson won the 2026 Edinburgh Comedy Awards for Best Comedy Show and Best Newcomer.
Entities
Artists
- Soheila Sokhanvari
- Olivia Sterling
- Laia Abril
- Aziza Kadyri
- Amak Mahmoodian
- Niamh O’Malley
- Ro Robertson
- Alyce Mahon
- Jonathan Anderson
- Anab Jain
- Solveiga Pakštaitė
- Sir Christopher Frayling
- Ben Evans
- Nicholas Boggs
- Ian Buruma
- Edward Chisholm
- Anand Gopal
- Charlotte Higgins
- Patrick Radden Keefe
- Ben Macintyre
- Bojan Pancevski
- Edmund Richardson
- Jane Rogoyska
- Åsne Seierstad
- Siân Mackie
- Matthew Sweet
- Andrea Wulf
- Chris Cantrill
- Marty Gleeson
- Tamm Reynolds
- Midgitte Bardots
- Dr Diana Carroll
- Ridley Scott
- Alexander the Great
- Barbara Cartland
- George Forster
- David Juda
- Yuko Juda
Institutions
- David and Yuko Juda Art Foundation
- Annely Juda Fine Art
- University of Cambridge
- London Design Festival
- Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction
- Bloomsbury Circus
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Atlantic Non-Fiction
- Atlantic Books
- Monoray
- Octopus Publishing Group
- Pluto Press
- Jonathan Cape
- Vintage
- Penguin Random House
- Picador
- Pan Macmillan
- Viking
- Penguin General
- Hutchinson Heinemann
- Cornerstone
- Allen Lane
- Penguin Press
- Virago
- Little, Brown Book Group
- Hodder & Stoughton
- Theatres Trust
- @sohoplace
- Edinburgh Comedy Awards
- Queer Britain Art Award
- National Gallery
- 200 Creators Network
- Royal Institute of Oil Painters
- Mall Galleries
- Scottish Society of Artists
- Royal Scottish Academy
- Unlimited
- ArtsHub
- The Sydney Morning Herald
- The Australian
- Woman's Day
- B&T
Locations
- London
- United Kingdom
- Hanover Square
- Edinburgh
- Scotland
- England
- Wales
- Limerick
- Ireland
- Berlin
- Germany
- Paris
- France
- Russia
- Ukraine
- Adelaide
- Australia
- Mayfair