Canadian-born sculptor Kim Perrier has won the People's Choice Award at Sculpture by the Sea for his work Ashes to Ashes, crafted with human faces carved into a hollowed tree trunk.
Perrier, who lives in Western Australia, says the sculpture was inspired by the way Indigenous people talk about the spirit of the land.
"The sculpture started as an experiment in charcoal and somehow a far greater spirit evoked its magic in its creation," he said in a statement read out by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull at Sydney's Tamarama beach.
Sculpture by the Sea, which features 107 sculptures from Australian and international artists, has extended its run by one day until November 9.
