World’s Best Fantasy Landscapists: ROSSOUW, ROL, HASSEL, RUPPENTAL, HALL, LU, PAULY, RODIGAS & GILVONAUSKAS / 2025 Art Collectors Choice Awards
Artists from 49 countries competed in the 2025 ART COLLECTORS CHOICE AWARDS. 15 international art collectors scored 50 categories of online images covering drawing, painting, sculpture, digital and photography.
The winning works will be revealed in this column one category at a time.
The ART COLLECTORS CHOICE AWARDS winners in CATEGORY 14. FANTASY LANDSCAPE represent SOUTH AFRICA, USA, UK, POLAND, CHINA, FRANCE, GERMANY & LITHUANIA.
BIO of 1st Place Winner:
ROELOF ROSSOUW IMPRESSIONIST ARTIST FROM SOUTH AFRICA
I was born in Benoni, South Africa in 1957. When I was seventeen my art teacher took us on a European Art Tour, and I fell in love with travel. Since 1995 I have visited a foreign country almost every year, mainly England and Europe. I have painted in Italy, Kiev, France and USA
From 1979 to 1981 I studied at the Art School in Johannesburg gaining a National Diploma in Art and Design (Graphic Design). From April 1982 to April 1990, I worked for MEDUNSA (Medical University of Southern Africa) as a graphic artist and medical illustrator. During this time, I discovered modern impressionistic painters such as Ken Howard and Bernard Dunstan of England, Max Agostini of France. Also New York portrait painter Everett Raymond Kinstler, and began studying their loose brush work which appeared in books and magazines
I started painting seriously daily in 1992 and in late 1994, I became a successful full-time artist. This year I am celebrating 30 years of freedom. A total of 50 solo exhibitions at top galleries in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Cheltenham UK. Numerous group exhibitions in South Africa, London, Cheltenham, Glasgow, Jersey, Galway, Montreal, San Francisco, Miami and New York.
INVICTUS ARTWORK: In 2009 three of my oil paintings of South African landscapes featured as props in Clint Eastwood’s movie ‘’Invictus’’. When Mr. Eastwood left the set he decided to buy two of the paintings for his personal collection
AWARDS / First prize for Eric Bolsman Book cover competition / First, second and third place in the 2014 American Art Awards in category 21: ‘’The Human Figure Impressionism’’ / Multiple annual winner in all the American Art Awards, winning a cash prize in 2024 for coming third in the whole contest of Art Collectors Choice Awards.
WINNER WEBSITES: CATEGORY 14. FANTASY LANDSCAPE
1st Place ROELOF ROSSOUW SOUTH AFRICA https://www.roelofrossouwart.com ‘’Zaanse Schans, Holland’’ 18x24'’ Oil, canvas.
2nd Place — Tie MAURITS ROL USA https://shivafool.com/ “Where One Path Leads” 16x20” Digital art.
2nd Place — Tie TANJA HASSEL UK www.tanjahassel.com “Friendship” 75x75cm Acrylic on canvas.
3rd Place — Tie TOMASZ RUPPENTAL POLAND tomaszruppental@wp.pl “Thief Of Dreams” 100x70 cm Oil on canvas.
3rd Place — Tie SAM HALL UK https://samhallart.pixels.com/ “Bay Of Pleasure” 20x16” Acrylic on box canvas.
4th Place — Tie YUN LU CHINA tian.sa@163.com “Thrive” 40x50cm Watercolor, gouache.
4th Place — Tie ÉMILIE PAULY FRANCE https://www.artmajeur.com/emilie-pauly “Divine Creature” 60x80cm Gouache and acrylic on cardboard.
5th Place — Tie STEFFI RODIGAS GERMANY www.steffi-rodigas-artist.com “Once Upon A Time…” 50x60x5cm Acrylic on wood.
5th Place — Tie ÉMILIE PAULY FRANCE https://www.artmajeur.com/emilie-pauly “Little Poseidon On A Trip” 54x70cm Acrylic on wood.
6th Place — Tie SAM HALL UK https://samhallart.pixels.com/ “Bay Of Plenty” 20x16” Acrylic on box canvas.
6th Place — Tie TOMAS GILVONAUSKAS LITHUANIA https://tumblr.com/gilvonas “Ship Above Tallinn” 29.7x21cm Acrylic on cardboard.
See hundreds of winning images and corresponding contact info to all the artists here:
In 2025, ART COLLECTORS CHOICE AWARDS had submissions from these 49 countries: Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Denmark, Egypt, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Herzegovina, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, UK, Ukraine, USA, Zimbabwe.
15 international art collectors asked to score art:
Jason Stuckless — Toronto, Ontario
Kene J. Rosa — Los Angeles, California
Michael Gregg Michaud — Los Angeles, California
Alec Wilder — Los Angeles / Las Vegas / New Orleans
Eddie Dyer — Los Angeles / Las Vegas / New Orleans
Thomas Zora — Las Vegas
Ron Lundin — Naples, Florida / Chicago, Illinois / Vail, Colorado
Jay H. Brewer — Orlando, Florida
Alan McMullen — Fannettsburg, Philadelphia
Brian Townley — Waco, Texas
Aimee Unakis — Georgetown, Illinois
Jordan Wallace — Georgetown, Illinois
Carole Hatcher — Rancho Mirage, California
Jan Gold — Roseville, California
Karen Valentine — Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mitchell Antesky — Toledo Ohio
