Celebrating Art and Environment: Kate Gorringe-Smith Wins 2025 WAMA Art Prize

artist Kate Gorringe-Smith

A landmark year for Australia’s premier environmental art award at the new National Centre for Environmental Art.

 

A Major Win in a Milestone Year for WAMA

The 2025 WAMA Art Prize has crowned its newest winner, with Victoria-based artist Kate Gorringe-Smith receiving the $15,000 Major Acquisitive Prize for her evocative linocut White-faced Heron at Twilight. The announcement was made during the opening of the exhibition at WAMA’s newly launched National Centre for Environmental Art in Budja Budja/Halls Gap, marking a significant moment for Australia’s only institution dedicated to the fusion of art and the environment.

Selected from 54 finalist works, Gorringe-Smith’s piece impressed the judging panel for its lyrical portrayal of nature and its poignant response to environmental themes. Her win places her alongside previous acquisitive prize recipients Melissa Smith (2021) and Martin King (2023), whose works form part of WAMA’s growing permanent collection.

 

Awards of Excellence Honour Diverse Environmental Perspectives

Three Awards of Excellence, each valued at $2,500, were also announced, showcasing the breadth of creative talent across Australia:

• Deanne Gilson for Earth Shield, for protection
• Ro Murray for Against the Tide I, II, III
• Dolores Skowronski Malloni for Grampians Bitter pea

These works, along with all other finalist pieces, are currently on display at the National Centre for Environmental Art and available for public purchase, aside from the Major Acquisitive Prize-winning artwork.

 

Public Engagement Grows with People’s Choice and Digital Showcase

Visitors can play a defining role in this year’s exhibition by voting in the 2026 People’s Choice Award, to be announced in March, with voters entered into a draw to win one of three WAMA prize packs.

Expanding the reach of this year’s program, WAMA will launch a Salon des Refusés on 15 December, presenting selected non-finalist artworks online. This digital exhibition increases access for audiences and buyers, offering further opportunities to support artists and discover unique environmental art.

 

WAMA’s Purpose-Built Gallery Opens a New Cultural Chapter

The 2025 exhibition is the first to be presented in WAMA’s purpose-built National Centre for Environmental Art, a milestone that signals a new era for nature-focused contemporary art in Australia. Spanning a 16-hectare precinct at the foothills of Gariwerd/Grampians National Park, WAMA integrates art, science and the natural world across its botanic gardens, native grasslands and gallery spaces.

Dolores Kkowronski-Malloni

WAMA CEO Francesca Valmorbida notes that the new gallery embodies WAMA’s mission to make art, science and nature accessible to all. She says the diversity of this year’s finalists offers a compelling insight into how artists across Australia are responding to the climate crisis and the complexities of the natural world.

WAMA Board Director and Art Prize judge Dr Jacqueline Healy praised the standard of entries, highlighting the strength and diversity of the winning works and describing Gorringe-Smith’s linocut as an important addition to the WAMA collection.

 

An Artist’s Deep Connection to the Environment

For Gorringe-Smith, winning the 2025 WAMA Art Prize is both a professional triumph and a personal milestone. She describes her art practice as a way of engaging deeply with the environment, and emphasises that birds often provide the most immediate connection to the natural world.

Past winner Melissa Smith echoed the significance of the accolade, calling the WAMA Art Prize a defining moment in her artistic career and recognising its profound commitment to nature-focused art.

 

A Growing National Platform for Environmental Art

The biennial WAMA Art Prize continues to attract strong national interest, receiving more than 450 entries in 2025. This year’s judging panel included leading voices in the arts and First Nations research, ensuring a rigorous and diverse assessment of environmental art from across Australia.

The exhibition runs from 6 December 2025 to 8 March 2026, with all finalist works accessible online at wamafoundation.com.au. Visitors to the opening weekend can also enjoy local refreshments from WAMA Café, including pulled pork or brisket Blue Wren brioche buns from Flame Brothers.

WAMA ART PRIZE 2025 EXHIBITION

Dates:6 December 2025 – 8 March 2026
Location:National Centre for Environmental Art, WAMA
4000 Ararat-Halls Gap Road, Halls Gap VIC 3381
Website: wamafoundation.com.au/experience/wama-art-prize-2025
Hours:Thursday–Sunday, 10am–5pm

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