‘Artists don’t do it for money’: Pacific Island creative wins Artes Mundi prize

Taloi Havini, whose work depicting Indigenous stories has resonance in Wales, awarded £40,000 prize in Cardiff ceremony

An artist from a small Pacific island who has found unexpected resonances with her work in the mountains, post-industrial landscapes and people of Wales has won the Artes Mundi prize, one of the UK’s most important contemporary arts awards.

Taloi Havini, who is from Buka Island in Bougainville, picked up the £40,000 prize at a ceremony in Cardiff, the home of the biennial exhibition and prize on Thursday evening.