The announcement gives the international aquascaping community its first published collection of leading works from this season. For Vietnamese aquascapers, it also brings a clear reason to celebrate: the country’s only representative in this Top 30 occupies the highest position.
This report covers the 30 places released so far, bringing together the ranking, original contest photographs and a country breakdown. Readers can also explore the creators’ wider competition journeys through AquaRank.
Champion: Trần Anh Đức — Tectonic Memory
CIAC 2026, rank 1: Tectonic Memory — Trần Anh Đức, Vietnam. Original contest image card.
“Tectonic Memory” presents a striking landscape of folded rock forms, with vivid green planting tracing their edges. The large foreground ridges gradually lead toward a narrower valley and a bright opening at the back. Pink and red planting near the surface adds a different register of colour, while a small group of fish occupies the distant open water.
In AquaLibs’ reading of the photograph, the design’s strongest feature is the relationship between the rocks’ repeated contours and the planting that follows them. The vegetation makes the structure easier to read without hiding its geological character. Changes in scale, overlapping forms and the retreat toward the brighter background give the scene depth.
The title offers a fitting starting point for viewing the work: a landscape that appears to carry the movement and layering of the earth into an aquarium. These are AquaLibs’ visual observations, rather than a statement of the judges’ reasons for awarding first place.
For Vietnam, the result deserves recognition both as an individual achievement and as a moment the wider community can share. At the centre of that celebration is a named creator and a specific work: Trần Anh Đức’s “Tectonic Memory.”
Second place: Acho Choky — Under The Cave
CIAC 2026, rank 2: Under The Cave — Acho Choky, Indonesia. Original contest image card.
Acho Choky’s “Under The Cave” creates a strongly enclosed scene. A dark overhead structure and shaded sides frame a bright opening, while fine hanging roots and green surfaces give the interior texture. The contrast between the sheltered foreground and the luminous distance provides a clear visual destination.
That description reflects AquaLibs’ interpretation of the published photograph. It does not substitute for an official judging commentary.
Choky was also the CIAC 2024 champion. His return to the podium makes this an interesting opportunity to compare different seasons and follow the development of his work. Explore Acho Choky’s AquaRank profile and revisit the CIAC 2024 gallery.
Third place: Zhao Gang — 幽邃
CIAC 2026, rank 3: 幽邃 — 赵刚, China. Original contest image card; the title is retained in its published Chinese form.
The third-place photograph offers another approach to depth. Green-covered forms build a layered valley around a pale route through the lower centre. Warm-coloured plants punctuate the upper slopes, and blue fish are visible against the darker middle water.
For AquaLibs, the contrast between those fish and their surroundings adds movement to a composition already structured by the planted slopes and open passage. Together, the three podium photographs give readers distinct scenes to examine: folded geological ridges, a shaded cave interior and a planted valley. This comparison describes their visible designs; it does not establish a preferred style or a scoring trend across the competition.
CIAC 2026 Top 30: the published ranking
The published Top 30 poster. Open the image to read the original list.
The table below transcribes the poster. Chinese names and titles are retained in their original form. The country/area label “Taiwan (China)” follows the source.
| Rank | Aquascaper | Country / area | Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trần Anh Đức | Vietnam | Tectonic Memory |
| 2 | Acho Choky | Indonesia | Under The Cave |
| 3 | 赵刚 | China | 幽邃 |
| 4 | Rahul Mukherjee | India | High Tide |
| 5 | Muhammad Yusuf | Indonesia | THE CREATION OF NATURE |
| 6 | 关利伟 | China | 幽谷潺音 |
| 7 | Efrain Sequera | Spain | Fallen |
| 8 | Rubens Gadelha | Brazil | Rift Valley |
| 9 | 余传威 | China | 《沉木》 |
| 10 | Eduardo Hidalgo | Brazil | After The Storm |
| 11 | Adam Dziadek | Poland | Serenity |
| 12 | Albert Escrihuela Cáceres | Spain | Ancient Tree |
| 13 | 王胜龙 | China | 《星沉》 |
| 14 | Luis Cardoso | Portugal | Abyss |
| 15 | Gustavo Pimenta do Nascimento | Brazil | Toruk Makto |
| 16 | Carlos Souza | Brazil | Origin |
| 17 | 廖國宏 | Taiwan (China) | 黃蝶翠谷 |
| 18 | Roberto Buenadicha | Spain | Golden River |
| 19 | Bahtiar gigi | Indonesia | evergreen valley 2 |
| 20 | 梁健聪 | China | 蛟龙戏水 |
| 21 | Cliverton Dantas da Silva | Brazil | Mumbaba |
| 22 | Marco iskandar | Indonesia | EMERALD SANCTUARY - Beyond Time |
| 23 | Marcin Biedal | Poland | The Lost World |
| 24 | Ismael Aguilar Soria | Spain | Fracture River |
| 25 | Adrian Asaftei | Romania | Gravity |
| 26 | 黄煜景 | China | 神往 |
| 27 | Marhasan | Indonesia | Wild of Nature |
| 28 | 张光阳 | China | 对视 |
| 29 | Jose luis Catedra Martinez | Spain | Ambroz |
| 30 | Danang Cahyo Nugroho | Indonesia | Anchor |
Explore CIAC 2026
Continue beyond the podium to discover the other aquascapes in this release. Open each photograph to view the original contest card, including its published rank and creator credit.
The country picture: ten countries and areas in the Top 30
Counting the published positions gives China seven places, Indonesia six, and Brazil and Spain five each. Poland has two. Vietnam, India, Portugal, Romania and Taiwan (China) each have one.
| Country / area | Top 30 places | Top 10 places |
|---|---|---|
| China | 7 | 3 |
| Indonesia | 6 | 2 |
| Brazil | 5 | 2 |
| Spain | 5 | 1 |
| Poland | 2 | 0 |
| Vietnam | 1 | 1 |
| India | 1 | 1 |
| Portugal | 1 | 0 |
| Romania | 1 | 0 |
| Taiwan (China) | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 30 | 10 |
These figures count ranked places in the published list, rather than total entries or the size of each country’s participating community. Vietnam’s single place is the championship; the larger totals elsewhere show how many works those countries have within this particular selection.
Follow the creators beyond one result
Several familiar CIAC names appear near the top. Rahul Mukherjee takes fourth with “High Tide,” while CIAC 2025 champion Muhammad Yusuf returns in fifth with “THE CREATION OF NATURE.” Both give readers a reason to look back at earlier works alongside the new photographs.
Rahul Mukherjee’s AquaRank profile and Muhammad Yusuf’s AquaRank profile connect those previous seasons with a broader competition record. Our review of CIAC 2025 offers another starting point for comparing depth, open space, planting and fish across works.
Explore AquaRank to discover more creators and follow their published competition journeys. AquaRank is AquaLibs’ independent resource; its career rankings are separate from the CIAC contest positions reported here.
What this announcement covers
The current release covers the Aquascaping Group Top 30. The poster provides positions, names, countries or areas, and work titles. It does not include numerical judging scores or individual judges’ comments.
The official competition schedule lists the CIAC 2026 award ceremony for 13 November, during CIPS in Guangzhou. The ceremony programme includes judges’ comments and interactions with winning aquascapers. See the official CIAC schedule for event information.
For now, the thirty published works offer plenty to explore. Start with “Tectonic Memory,” follow the contrasting scenes on the podium, and then spend time with the creators further down the list. Which CIAC 2026 aquascape would you like AquaLibs to analyse next?
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