Professor Suzanne Cory AC FAA FRS

Suzanne Cory AC (b. 1942) is a molecular biologist whose research has contributed to the understanding of immunology and the development of cancer. Born in Melbourne, Cory went to the University of Cambridge in 1966 to undertake her PhD in molecular biology. There she met US-born scientist Jerry Adams, who she later married. In 1971 they returned to Melbourne and continued their research partnership at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research at the University of Melbourne, studying the formation of antibodies and the role of chromosomes in the development of cancer, and helping to introduce gene cloning technology in Australia. Director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute from 1996 to 2009, Cory received the prestigious L'Oreal/UNESCO Women in Science Award in 2001. A fellow of the Australian Academy of Science since 1986, she was its president from 2010 to 2014 – the first woman elected to the presidency. Cory continues to head the laboratory in the Molecular Genetics of Cancer Division at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.

For this portrait, Raelene Sharp drew charcoal sketches of her subject before beginning to paint. Depicting Cory against a backdrop of faintly traced DNA, this painting was a finalist in the 2016 Portia Geach Memorial Award and shows Sharp's compelling use of light.

Gift of the artist 2017
© Raelene Sharp