The OAS Young Artist Award, a category open for artists aged up to 25, was collected by 14-year-old South Otago High School student Joss Winslade.
She said her gleaming oil on canvas Seafoam Green represented about 10 hours work, practising and refining light reflection technique, inspired by an image she found online.
"I’ve been really fortunate with the people who said I had potential and encouraged and taught me," she said.
"The South Otago Arts Society always gave me a lot of support, letting me enter exhibitions and attend workshops ... [the late local watercolourist] Alison Gray gave me my first watercolour lesson when I was 3 and always helped me look out for new techniques and learn them."
Joss has also presented and sold work at South Otago Art Exhibitions and the Waimumu Art Exhibition, the 2022 Lawrence Clutha Youth Art, and West Otago exhibitions.
"I wanted them to feel relaxed about doing it [because] I never felt confident enough to exhibit until I was in my 20s," she said.
The award-winning painting is in the annual OAS exhibition at Dunedin Railway Station.
The Young Artist Award came with $1500 prize money.
"I’ll probably put it towards materials and equipment so I can keep practising and hopefully keep getting better," Joss said.
