DONE IT AGAIN: Artist Penny Lin has come up trumps for a second time in the prestigious Estuary Artworks competition. Times photo Bruce Nicholson

• Howick and Pakuranga Times

PENNY Lin took 10 metres of fabric and a few bottles of ink, added some knowledge of science and the environment, and turned it all into artistic magic.

The Howickian’s entry captured the $5000 first prize in the annual Estuary Artworks, which was officially opened in front of hundreds of people on Thursday night.

Run by Uxbridge, Howick’s creative centre, the artworks and exhibition of finalists’ work are intended to highlight the importance of conserving the Tamaki Estuary.

Ms Lin is no stranger to artistic success, having won the 2009 version of the awards.

The Howick Local Board is funding her prize money, while the winning work now becomes part of the Auckland Council’s art collection.

Auckland councillor Dick Quax opened the exhibition, a ceremony also attended by Howick Local Board chairman Michael Williams and members Shirley Warren, Wayne Huang, Jim Donald and Adele White.

Before announcing the winner, the competition judges, Auckland Art Gallery director Chris Saines and media arts writer TJ McNamara, explained to the audience why they chose Ms Lin’s entry.

“We were struck by the visual energy, elegance and potency of this work,” Mr Saines said.

“It’s extraordinarily subtle and very elegant. We were also impressed by its originality. Of all the works it’s undoubtedly the most original.”

Ms Lin’s work, entitled Fish, is the culmination of a process that started at the end of last year, when she first began thinking about her entry.

A trip to Taiwan in the Christmas holidays delayed her plans for the project, so she had to change tack.

The accomplished artist was careful when choosing the colour of fabric she’d use.

“The context of this work is not about clean air and crystal clear water, because the water has been polluted, so I had that in my mind,” Ms Lin told the Times.

“A bright blue colour wasn’t an option. And I was going to use ink in it, so had to choose a colour somewhere between clear and really dark.”

Ms Lin then found a wooden plinth to place her fabric, onto which she carefully drew dozens of images.

Black shapes and words using Chinese calligraphy depict the evolution of how the word “fish” has been created throughout history.

“I wanted to contextualise the work in the gallery with an understanding of a natural waterway,” Ms Lin says.

“I can’t bring water into the gallery, so the folding of the fabric represents ripples in the water.

“I’m talking about [the themes of] time and journey with this piece.

“At the bottom of the work, the fish are more like a drawing, similar to pictures on ancient Chinese vases, but as they move ‘upstream’ the characters begin to evolve.”