Finalists Revealed For The 2026 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize

Woollahra Gallery has announced the 49 finalists for the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Australia’s most prestigious award for small-scale sculpture. The prize, which is now in its 25th year, will see all the finalist works displayed in a free exhibition at Woolahra Gallery, Redleaf, from 2 October to 29 November. 

Highlights among the finalists’ works include BJ Kim’s do Geese see God?, a metallic avian sculpture, and Bryant Chitsey’s Thunderstorm, a haybale constructed entirely from concentric toothpicks. Each of the finalists were selected for the quality, originality, and artistic excellence of their work, from a pool of 724 local and international entries.

“The finalists selected by this year’s judges come from across Australia and around the world” said Gallery Director Sep Pourbozorgi. “[They] represent both emerging and established artists at pivotal moments in their careers.

“Here, artists reveal the remarkable breadth of contemporary sculptural practice, with works in bronze, paper, glass and ceramics. Assemblage, often incorporating found objects and recycled materials, features prominently alongside 3D-printed and kinetic sculptures. 

“Some works explore history, industry and the expressive potential of materials themselves, while others emerge from failed experiments, successful prototypes and the pursuit of new artistic directions. The result is an exhibition that captures the richness, originality and innovation of contemporary sculpture.”

Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize: A Word From The Judges

Emily Sullivan, Assistant Curator of Contemporary International Art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, praised the 2026 finalists’ submissions:

“It’s been a pleasure and a privilege to judge the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize 2026. These works offer small, personal windows into the things that enthrall and affect us – the natural world, people, and the uncanny. That the sculptures vary so much – from assemblages of found and reclaimed objects to meticulously hewn forms – makes our job all the more enjoyable, and difficult!”

The winning work will receive the $25,000 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize and join Woollahra Council’s public art collection. Other recognitions include the Special Commendation Award ($2,000), Mayor’s Award ($1,000), and the Viewers’ Choice Award ($1,000).

Last year’s prize was won by Auckland-based artist Virginia Leonard, who used clay, pure gold, and resin for her work Glad that you are not here all the time — an urn for unwanted limbs and other things, combining glazed ceramics with resin casting to explore the tensions between opacity and transparency.