Three awards were given for work in visual arts: judges said work by celebrated Māori artist Reuben Paterson “dazzles with glitter and light, reimagining kōwhaiwhai, floral motif, and queer identity in bold new conversations for contemporary art”. Painter Séraphine Pick was recognised for her imaginative paintings that explore female experience and inner worlds, and sculptor Shona Rapira-Davies acknowledged for her vision that “confronts colonisation and uplifts Māori womanhood, creating powerful works that are both political and poetic”.
