Antonio Paucar, an artist and beekeeper from the remote Andes region of Peru, has been declared the winner of the biennial Artes Mundi prize, one of the UK’s most prestigious contemporary art awards. The £40,000 prize money will be used by Paucar to build a cultural centre in the Peruvian mountains.
Paucar’s winning work showcased a range of pieces, from a spiral sculpture made of alpaca wool to a video of him writing a poem about the environmental crisis facing his region, using his own blood. The Artes Mundi prize, based in Wales, aims to highlight the work of talented but largely unrecognised artists from around the world and display their pieces across the country.
Speaking before the prize ceremony in Cardiff, Paucar expressed his surprise at the win, stating, “The journey of an artist is very difficult. For me, this kind of recognition is very important for my region, my country, my culture. It gives me strength to continue developing new projects.”
Paucar, who hails from the village of Aza near Huancayo in central Peru, comes from a family that makes traditional figures and masks. He worked as a beekeeper in the Peruvian highlands before travelling to Berlin to study art. Now, he divides his time between creating art that addresses environmental issues and preserving his culture and language, while also caring for his bees.
Among Paucar’s works on display at the National Museum Cardiff is a spiral sculpture made of black and white alpaca wool, titled “La Energía Espiral del Ayni.” Paucar explained that “Ayni” is a Quechua word representing an Andean concept of interconnectedness, where “everything is linked.” He believes this worldview has allowed the people of the Andes to maintain a balance with nature.
Another of Paucar’s pieces, “El Corazón de la Montaña,” features a video of the artist sitting at a desk in the mountains, writing a message about the melting glaciers in the Andes using his own blood. Additionally, one of his works displayed at the Mostyn gallery in Llandudno, North Wales, features the imprints of his bare feet on the wall, drawn from his exploration of the nearby limestone headland, Y Gogarth.
Paucar has identified parallels between the Celtic culture of Wales and the Andean culture of his homeland, both of which place a strong emphasis on the connection with nature and the preservation of language. The director of Artes Mundi, Nigel Prince, sees this as a positive development, stating that the exhibition aims to focus on “things that bring people together” in the current global context.
The Artes Mundi exhibition featuring Paucar’s work, along with that of five other artists, can be viewed at five galleries across Wales until 1 March 2026.
