A Bridgetown artist has taken out the top prize at the 2025 Castaways Sculpture Awards despite having to restart his life-size sculpture just three weeks before the deadline.
Kim Perrier was awarded the $10,000 Major Award for his work De-Vine, a full-size aluminium sculpture that merges the human form with elements of nature.
The piece was completed just hours before installation after a casting failure forced Perrier to begin again from scratch.
“I had to start from scratch with a new model and recasting,” Perrier said.
“There was about two and a half weeks of full-time work to finish it, but I find that stress really exhilarating.”
This is Perrier’s fifth time entering Castaways with three People's Choice Awards already to his name.
He said it was a “nice ending to a lot of hard work".
Other winners of Castaways include Swan View artist Damien Gavillet who won the $5000 Innovation Award for Orbital, a sculptural installation made from four disused trampoline rings and scrap aluminium slats.
Inspired by the orbital paths of electrons and celestial bodies, the work explores the idea that everything in the universe is interconnected.
The $5000 Sustainability Award went to Innaloo-based artist Richard Aitken for No Junk Mail, a sculptural letterbox crafted from old fridges, stoves, and floorboards.
Aitken, a long-time Castaways contributor and previous Major Award winner, highlights the hidden beauty in discarded white goods.
Hillman artist Janice O’Meara won the Maquette and Small Sculpture Exhibition with Frag-mented, a puppet-like numbat made from recycled copper wire, beach-found wool, and fabric from an old pair of shorts.
The work symbolises the fractured relationship between nature and modernity and is on display at the Rockingham Arts Centre.
The City of Rockingham Local Resident Award went to Secret Harbour artist Ben Veljacich for The Little Penguin, a three-metre-high aluminium outline of a penguin dedicated to the local penguin population.
The sculpture has become a popular photo opportunity for visitors.
In the Schools Exhibition at Churchill Park, Settlers Primary School won the Primary School Award with Prickly’s Playground, while SMYL Community College Tesla Campus won the Secondary School Award with Bottled Up: When I Couldn’t Speak, You Stayed, supported by workshops with Kim Perrier and led by his daughter, teacher Kemiel Perrier.
“Castaways has become such a special part of our community’s identity, and the work on display this year is astounding. We’re proud to celebrate both local talent and global ideas right here on our beautiful foreshore," City of Rockingham Mayor Lorna Buchan said.
The Main Exhibition at Rockingham Foreshore, the Schools Exhibition at Churchill Park, and the Maquette and Small Sculpture Exhibition at Rockingham Arts Centre are open until Sunday, November 2.
Fremantle Ports People’s Choice voting is open until 5pm Sunday, November 2, with all voters in the draw for a chance to win $500.
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