Across moving image, sculpture and installation, the Walters Prize finalists explore the complexity of belonging, transformation and perception.
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki has revealed the four finalists for the 2027 Walters Prize, reaffirming its position as Aotearoa New Zealand’s most significant award for contemporary art. Held every three years, the prize has, over more than two decades, become a critical platform for recognising artistic excellence while shaping the trajectory of contemporary practice both locally and internationally.
Selected by an independent jury, this year’s finalists — Edith Amituanai, Richard Frater, Ammon Ngakuru and Sorawit Songsataya — were nominated for works exhibited between February 2023 and February 2026. Together, their practices reflect a period defined by global instability, yet rather than amplifying this turbulence, the jury noted a shared inclination toward introspection: an attention to local, personal and material narratives that expand the conceptual possibilities of contemporary art.
Lens-based artist Edith Amituanai is recognised for Vaimoe (2024), a work that marks a subtle but significant shift into moving image. Known for her lucid explorations of community and identity, Amituanai continues to examine ideas of home and belonging, probing how relationships endure across distance, disconnection and change.
Ammon Ngakuru’s Three Scenes (2025), commissioned for the Auckland Art Gallery’s outdoor terrace, demonstrates a restrained yet conceptually layered approach to sculpture. Engaging directly with its site on Albert Park, the work invites viewers into a shifting field of references, where meaning is neither fixed nor singular, but performed through interaction.
Berlin-based artist Richard Frater was selected for Nicky’s conversion (2024), a tender and powerful work that documents the rehearsal of a sermon by an Anglican priest. Through this intimate framework, Frater navigates questions of gender identity, spirituality and selfhood, offering a nuanced reflection on reconciliation — both personal and institutional.
Rounding out the finalists, Sorawit Songsataya was nominated for Fibrous Soul (2024), first presented at Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. Working across moving image and sculpture, Songsataya explores cycles of regeneration and transformation, drawing together organic and synthetic materials alongside customary and contemporary practices. The result is a richly textured inquiry into the relationships between human and more-than-human worlds.
Dr Zara Stanhope, Director of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, describes the selection as “a poignant reminder of the breadth and range of art across Aotearoa,” highlighting the vitality of the country’s cultural landscape. Senior Curator Natasha Conland adds that the finalists’ works are “materially rich… with unique, often humorous and intellectually rewarding content,” reflecting a growing appetite for art that challenges, questions and expands.
The four artists will present their works in a major exhibition at Auckland Art Gallery, opening in March 2027. The winner will be announced later that year by an international judge, continuing the Walters Prize’s legacy of fostering critical dialogue and elevating contemporary art from Aotearoa onto the global stage.
Read more about the Walters Prize.
