People's Choice 2025 Winner – Esra Sakar’s "Alien Hand Syndrome"

In a powerful culmination to this year’s Art as a Response to Mental Health exhibition, Esra Sakar of Turkey has been crowned the People’s Choice 2025 Winner for her striking and unforgettable piece, "Alien Hand Syndrome."

Wrapped in haunting symbolism and emotional intensity, Sakar’s work captivated audiences rising other international entries to claim this prestigious public accolade. Her image is not simply a visual experience; it is a visceral journey into the unseen, often misunderstood world of mental health.

At the centre of her piece, a figure cloaked in deep crimson emerges from a shadowed background,faceless, yet unmistakably human. An outstretched hand interrupts the composition, marked with a staring eye etched into its palm. The surreal visual elements evoke a sense of estrangement and inner fragmentation, echoing the alienation many feel when struggling with complex psychological conditions.

A Portrait of the Invisible

In Sakar’s own words, this work is part of a broader series that “does not aim to merely display mental disorders; it seeks to reveal the human behind them.” Her fictional portraits delve into emotional collapse, identity fragmentation, and the heavy silence that shrouds inner suffering. Rather than pathologizing the subject, her work compassionately illuminates the raw emotional terrain traversed by those living with mental illness.

"Alien Hand Syndrome" invites the viewer to pause and reflect,

not only on the experience of the subject but on the role society plays in shaping (or distorting) those experiences. The disembodied eye in the hand, the obscured face, and the barren branches surrounding the figure create a compelling metaphor for being watched, judged, and misunderstood. It speaks to the way stigma dehumanizes and isolates, making people feel like strangers in their own minds and bodies.

Art as Voice and Resistance

This winning image resonates because it does more than depict a condition—it offers resistance. It refuses to reduce mental illness to diagnosis or stereotype. Instead, it becomes what Sakar describes as “a voice, an echo, and a call for understanding.” In this, her work does exactly what Art as a Response to Mental Health was created to do: give artists space to challenge stigma, inspire dialogue, and build bridges of empathy through visual language.

We are honoured to celebrate Esra Sakar and her exceptional talent. Her work is not only a testament to the power of art but a powerful reminder that mental health conversations need courage, creativity, and community.

Congratulations, Esra Sakar.