A tradie-turned-artist has won the 2025 Gallipoli Art Prize using techniques he learnt while on the tools.
Now a grandfather, third generation builder Andrew Tomkins received the award in front of family on Wednesday with tears in his eyes.
"I get a bit emotional," he told AAP.
"Artists live for winning a prize, it doesn't happen everyday."
Tomkins developed a unique technique for his artwork over the past few years, cutting shapes off a painted polyester sheet and using the stencils as layers.
The acrylic coating he applies to his work can also be seen on the outside of houses, and is a technique he learnt as a tradesman.
It's the second time Tomkins has won the $20,000 prize and his fifth time as a finalist.
The award has been running for two decades and honours soldiers who fought at Gallipoli in 1915, where more than 10,000 Australian and New Zealand soldiers were killed.
"For me, the award is about remembering the past," Tomkins said.
"We can't achieve peace without remembering what happened to create problems."
Tomkins first won the award in 2023 for his artwork Ray's Room that paid tribute to his uncle who served in World War II.
His grandparents also served in the First Word War.
"The fact they survived and came back, that does lead back into the families," he said.
"Their stresses and anxiety in the aftermath of having to come back to normality."
Tomkins' 2025 entry was inspired by a warship that now lies abandoned in Homebush Bay in Sydney's west, sprouting endangered mangroves.
The HMAS Karangi vessel was launched to help defend Darwin during the Japanese bombing of 1942.
The artwork is a tribute to the personnel who sailed the ship, and a visual statement encouraging viewers to learn from past conflicts, Tomkins said.
“With the global turmoil that has been happening, I thought to try and present a statement that would represent a more peaceful world," he said.
The 32 finalists will be exhibited in Sydney at 6-8 Atherden Street, The Rocks from April 17 to May 11.
