French artist Laure Prouvost has won this year's Turner Prize for her piece Wantee, which takes the audience in search of her fictional grandfather.
The announcement was by actress Saoirse Ronan in Londonderry on Monday.
The BBC reports Prouvost beat humorous artist David Shrigley, painter Lynette Yiadom-Boakye and performance artist Tino Sehgal to take the £25,000 prize.
Prouvost, 35, who lives and works in Britain, thanked organisers for accepting her into the art scene.
"Thank you for adopting me, thank you for having a French one here," she said.
"I've been here so many years and I feel adopted totally now by the UK, thank you."
Judges said Prouvost's piece, which was commissioned for this year's Schwitters in Britain exhibition at Tate Britain, was "unexpectedly moving" and "outstanding for its complex and courageous combination of images and objects in a deeply atmospheric environment".
Prouvost also won the fourth Max Mara art prize for women in 2011.
This year's jury was chaired by Tate Britain director Penelope Curtis and includes the curator Annie Fletcher and the writer and lecturer Declan Long.
Each of the other shortlisted artists will receive £5,000.
The Turner Prize exhibition is on display at the Ebrington Barracks until 5 January.
