WESTERN Australian contemporary artist Holly Story has won the third annual $15,000 BankWest Contemporary Art Prize.
Ms Story’s work was chosen from a field of 102 established and emerging WA artists.
Entitled Patterns of Settlement, it is automatically acquired for the BankWest Contemporary Art Collection that now contains more than 500 works.
A special prize of $2,000 in art supplies will be awarded to the winner of the People’s Choice Award at the close of the exhibition on November 16.
BankWest group managing director Terry Budge said the bank was committed to supporting WA arts through sponsorships such as the BankWest Contemporary Art Prize.
"BankWest has been a strong supporter of the local art community for many years," he said.
"This prize is raising awareness about the high quality of contemporary artists in WA. It’s also helping us build the finest collection of WA contemporary art."
Mr Budge said the bank had purchased 15 new works by WA artists in the past year.
The BankWest Contemporary Art exhibition runs at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art in the Perth Cultural Centre until November 16.
This is what the judges had to say about Ms Story’s work:
"It’s quite a poignant piece about European colonisation and the struggles they faced using complicated, ornate patterns on an old, worn blanket. The original settlers often brought with them old curtains and blankets. This represents their struggle".