Indigenous inspired artwork wins Sculpture people's choice

A work inspired by the way Indigenous people talk about the spirit of the land has won the People's Choice Award at Sculpture by the Sea.

A woman walks round Ashes to Ashes by Kim Perrier which was awarded the Sculpture By The Sea, Bondi, People's Choice Award by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in Tamarama, Sydney, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2015. (AAP Image/David Moir) NO ARCHIVING Source: AAP

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.