Wellington–An Indian-origin artist in New Zealand has won the top award presented by a leading art gallery.

Prakash Patel of Wanganui in New Zealand’s North Island won the Sarjeant Gallery Open Award for his work, titled ‘Astronaut’

It is considered the top award in a series of Sarjeant Gallery Arts Review awards presented by the gallery in Wanganui.

The awards are open to any artist in the Wanganui district in the North Island of this south Pacific island nation and were presented June 7, the Wanganui Chronicle reported Tuesday.

Patel’s acrylic on canvas work is an “eye-catching swirl of blue and black, with details in gold”, according to the report.

“It’s actually part of a series I did for a show in Auckland, but I already had enough paintings for that,” he was quoted as saying.

“So I left it out of the show and entered it for the Arts Review instead.”

With this, Patel, who received NZ$1,000 along with the trophy, has won an Arts Review award for the fourth time.

The artist grew up in Wanganui, studied art at the Eastern Institute of Technology in Napier and returned to Wanganui in 1993 after he had finished his studies.—IANS