Waikanae artist Kayla Christensen has won the 2026 World of WearableArt ® (WOW) Supreme WOW Award at Wellington’s TSB Arena.
Christensen took the award for Sacred Nightfall, an intricately hand-painted and stitched tapestry which summons an ethereal night goddess from the deep native forests of Aotearoa.
With a strong global field of creatives from 18 countries, New Zealand designers had a standout showing at the 2026 WOW Awards; taking home 15 of the 25 prizes, including the competition’s top two honours.
Kiwi husband-and-wife team Erna Van Der Wat and Karl Van Der Wat received the Runner-Up Award for Armour of Pain, inspired by Erna’s journey with chronic pain, and its transformation from tormentor to mentor – which judges described as a “fearless portrayal of pain and power”.
A 10-time WOW finalist, Waikanae-based Kayla Christensen has received six prior awards, including placing first in the Aotearoa Section in 2024 and receiving the Dame Suzie Moncrieff Award in 2019. WOW Head of Competition Sarah Nathan says judges described Sacred Nightfall as mesmerising and multilayered, rich with kaitiakitanga and wairua.
“Sacred Nightfall asks us to listen to what remains in the darkness and protect what still lives. The extinct whēkau and ruru hinapō are painted back into existence, restoring their memory and honouring the fragile natural world that still surrounds us,” she says.
This year’s winners were selected from 108 finalist entries created by 134 designers from 18 countries; with a prize pool of over $200,000.
Alongside the leading performance of New Zealand designers, multiple artists from Taiwan also enjoyed notable success this year – including student, Cheng-Hung Lin, who took the 2026 Dame Suzie Moncrieff Award; while internationally acclaimed avant-garde designers Bethany Cordwell of Australia and Cecilio Castrillo of Spain took out the Avant-garde Section and Absolutely Positively Wellington International Design Merit Award respectively.
The 2026 WOW Competition judging panel was comprised of WOW Founder, Ambassador, and Resident Judge Dame Suzie Moncrieff; NZ surrealist and expressionist painter Kate MacKenzie and Creative Director of Taylor and The Shelter, Vicki Taylor.
The 2026 World of WearableArt Show: GLO! runs 17 September – 4 October at TSB Arena in Wellington. Tickets are on sale now at worldofwearableart.com
2026 WORLD OF WEARABLEART™ AWARD WINNERS
Supreme WOW Award: Sacred Nightfall, Kayla Christensen, New Zealand
Supreme WOW Award Runner-up: Armour of Pain, Erna Van Der Wat & Karl Van Der Wat, New Zealand Section winners
Open Section
Winner: More, Katherine Bertram, New Zealand
Runner-up: Spectrum of a Wallflower, Louise MacKay & Allison MacKay, New Zealand
Avant-garde Section
Winner: Hard Exterior, Alter Ego, Bethany Cordwell, Australia
Runner-up: Marginal Gravity, Chao Po-Chien, Shih Chien University, Taiwan
Aotearoa Section
Winner: Sacred Nightfall, Kayla Christensen, New Zealand
Runner-up: MOTHER VAKA, Vasemaca Tavola & Czarina Wilson, New Zealand
Metallic Section
Winner: Armour of Pain, Erna Van Der Wat & Karl Van Der Wat, New Zealand
Runner-up: The Golden Illusion, Shantanu Singh, India
Kinetic Section
Winner: Thoughts, Tracey Murphy & Isabel Costley, New Zealand
Runner-up: Lophii, Joe Blanck, Australia
Bizarre Bra Section
Winner: Bust a Move, Lyndal Linton, New Zealand
Runner-up: Busted!, Katherine Bertram, New Zealand