{"id":556923,"date":"2026-03-22T11:51:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T11:51:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/556923\/"},"modified":"2026-03-22T11:51:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T11:51:19","slug":"sculpture-by-the-sea-beloved-art-show-returns-with-230000-visitors-future-remains-uncertain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/556923\/","title":{"rendered":"Sculpture by the Sea: Beloved art show returns with 230,000 visitors, future remains uncertain"},"content":{"rendered":"

The glistening waters of Cottesloe Beach of course provided the backdrop for this year\u2019s Sculpture by the Sea award ceremony on Sunday afternoon.<\/p>\n

After a year\u2019s absence, the exhibition was warmly welcomed back, drawing an estimated 230,000 visitors and reaffirming its place as one of Western Australia\u2019s most beloved cultural events.<\/p>\n

The EY People\u2019s Choice Award was awarded to Tim Storrier for his sculpture Emperor of the Albrolhos.<\/p>\n

Mr Storrier AM is an Archibald Prize-winning painter and sculptor whose work is held in major public collections around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Louvre in Paris, the Tate in London, the National Gallery of Australia and the Art Gallery of NSW.<\/p>\n

The Kids\u2019 Choice Prize went to Drew McDonald for his sculpture SOMA. The New South Wales artist described the win as a \u201chuge compliment\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would have loved to be there in person today to accept this award, but I\u2019m just about to fly to Berlin for an artist residency, which feels like a fitting continuation of the journey that exhibiting in Sculpture by the Sea has started,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you all again. I really appreciate all of you and this award.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"RyanCamera IconRyan Davern, 11, and Hari Diamantidakis, 11, with the winning sculpture titled \u2018SOMA\u2019. Credit: Carwyn Monck\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Local artist Jason Hirst took home the Artist\u2019s Choice Award for his work Love U, while fellow West Aussie Vaughn Bisschops received the Staff Pick for Heaven Is A Place Where Nothing Ever Happens.<\/p>\n

After losing federal funding and cancelling the 2025 exhibition, organisers secured a new mix of support to keep the $2.7 million event running.<\/p>\n

Currently, half of the funding comes via Austrade and the State Government, with the remainder sourced from sponsors, private donors, artwork sales, merchandise and small public contributions – which are typically about $5 per visitor.<\/p>\n

Those visitor donations are expected to raise around $80,000 this year.<\/p>\n

Despite its popularity, the future of the event remains uncertain and is only secured until 2027.<\/p>\n

Founder David Handley described the exhibition\u2019s survival as a constant balancing act.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike with anything, the future\u2019s not guaranteed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"SculptureCamera IconSculpture by the Sea founding chief executive David Handley during the award presentations at Cottesloe. Credit: Carwyn Monck\/The West Australian\"AttendeesCamera IconAttendees to the award presentations at Cottesloe. Credit: Carwyn Monck\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

\u201cYou secure funding for two or three years, and then you immediately start working on the next period.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people of Perth welcomed us with open arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been very special to see the response. Even when we were setting up, we were getting smiles, recognition and people simply saying thank you for coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite ongoing uncertainty, Mr Handley said the event would \u201cnever ever\u201d become ticketed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t fence off beaches in Australia,\u201d he said \u201cThese exhibitions are intended as gifts to the people of Perth and its visitors.\u201d<\/p>\n

In an era of renewed global tensions, he believes the arts should be strengthened, not sidelined.<\/p>\n

He referenced Winston Churchill\u2019s wartime response to proposed arts cuts: \u201cWhat on earth are we fighting for?\u201d<\/p>\n

He said renewed government support \u201crepresents Australia as an egalitarian society\u201d, where \u201cpeople from all backgrounds come together for the beach, the art and each other\u201d.<\/p>\n

However, the 2025 cancellation also served as a reminder that even widely loved cultural institutions are not immune to shifting political and financial priorities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The glistening waters of Cottesloe Beach of course provided the backdrop for this year\u2019s Sculpture by the Sea…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":556924,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[449,64,63,134,45],"class_list":["post-556923","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-arts","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-entertainment","tag-wa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556923","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=556923"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556923\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/556924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=556923"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=556923"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=556923"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}