Search / alexander miller

Alex Miller (b. 1936), one of Australia’s most decorated and popular authors, migrated from England to Australia on his own as a sixteen-year-old.

3 portraits in the collection

Alex Miller, novelist, 2022

Hong Fu

Portrait, pencil on paper

Gift of the artist 2022

Alex Miller, 1992

Rick Amor

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Alex Miller, 1992

Rick Amor

Portrait, pencil on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Alexander Forrest was a delegate from Western Australia at the Constitutional Convention, Sydney 1891.

1 portrait in the collection

Alexander Sturrock MBE

Jock Sturrock (1915–1997) was skipper of Gretel, the first Australian American’s Cup challenger in 1962 and was named Australian of the Year for his ‘plucky attempt’, his ‘modest and manly bearing’ and the ‘sporting spirit’ in which he and his crew accepted defeat.

1 portrait in the collection

Alexander Ramsay

Alexander Ramsay CBE (1914-1978), public servant, trained and worked as a teacher before gaining his degree at the University of Adelaide in 1941.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Alexander C. Onslow

Sir Alexander Campbell Onslow (1842-1908), judge, was educated at Cambridge and practised law in England before being appointed attorney general of British Honduras in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Alexander Dalrymple

Alexander Dalrymple (1737-1808), hydrographer and writer, began work with the East India Company in Madras in 1752.

1 portrait in the collection

Alexander Macleay

Alexander McLeay (aka Macleay) (1767-1848), public servant and entomologist, acquired an interest in insects while working as a clerk in London.

1 portrait in the collection

Mullet magic

Leith Alexander

Keith Alexander Laught

Keith Alexander Laught (1907-1969), politician, was born in Adelaide and educated at Scotch College and then the University of Adelaide, becoming a barrister in 1929.

1 portrait in the collection

Sketch portrait of Sir Alex Onslow, 1896

Tom Roberts

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2006

Leonora Carrington, St. Martin d'Ardèche, France

Lee Miller

Portrait, oil on composition board

Alexander Maurice Ramsay, 1978

Robert Hannaford AM

Gift of Janet, Andrew, Kathryn and Eleanor Ramsay, daughters and son of Alexander Maurice Ramsay and Amy Jane Ramsay 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Alexander 'Jock' Sturrock, 1962

Graham Thorley

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

David Alexander Stewart Campbell

David Alexander Stewart Campbell (1898-1970), wool buyer and journal editor, undertook a woolclassing course in Sydney, worked as a jackeroo, served in the AIF in Egypt and gained further experience with wool in England before he was inducted into the wool trade in Melbourne.

1 portrait in the collection

Godfrey Miller

Godfrey Miller (1893-1964) arrived in Australia from his native New Zealand in 1919.

1 portrait in the collection

Lewis Miller

Lewis Miller (b. 1959), artist, won the Archibald Prize in 1998 with one of his many portraits of fellow artist Allan Mitelman, and has been a finalist seventeen times.

4 portraits in the collection

Jacques Miller AC

Jacques Miller AC (b. 1931), immunologist, spent his early childhood in Shanghai and Lausanne before coming to Sydney with his parents at the age of ten.

2 portraits in the collection

Keith Miller

Keith Miller MBE (1919-2004) was Australia's greatest cricketing all-rounder.

1 portrait in the collection

Kayla, 2017

by Stuart Miller

Shaymaa, 2017

by Stuart Miller

Gori, Bougainville, 2009

by Stuart Miller

Bill

Stuart Miller

And then came the night

Amanda Miller

Strong Avenue, Graceville, Brisbane

Stuart Miller

Sir Alexander Fuller-Acland-Hood Bart

Charles Fox after Sir Thomas Lawrence

Sir Alexander Fuller-Acland-Hood Bart MP (1853-1917) was MP for West Somerset from 1892 to 1911, when he was created Lord St Audries.

1 portrait in the collection

Alexander MacLeay, c. 1845

Portrait, engraving on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

Mr and Mrs Case, 1864

Alexander Fox and Co

Portrait, albumen photograph on carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Keith Laught, 1951

Geoffrey Shedley

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Mary Shedley, Mrs Christine Moriarty, Mrs Josephine Lawrence and Mrs Helen Beare 2010

Sir James Forrest, 1978

William Boissevain

Gift of Alcoa World Alumina Australia 2005. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Keith Miller, early 1950s (printed 2008)

Max Dupain OBE

Purchased 2008

Ronald Dale Barassi, 2000

Gift of the artist 2007. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Charles Wallace Alexander Napier Cochrane-Baillie

Charles Wallace Alexander Napier Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington (1860–1940) had served four years in the House of Commons before being appointed governor of Queensland in October 1895.

1 portrait in the collection

D.A.S. Campbell (David Alexander Stewart Campbell), 1963

Sir William Dargie CBE

William Daniell after George Dance

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Dr Mary Newlinds and Sheena Simpson in memory of their father, D.A.S. Campbell, 2014

Alexander Dalrymple, 1809

Portrait, soft ground etching on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2012

George Miller, 2002 (printed 2004)

Karin Catt

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Jacques Miller, 2012

Dave Tacon

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Godfrey Miller, 1949

Kerry Dundas

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Richard King 2008
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Jacques Miller, 2002

Peter Wegner

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2008

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2013
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Form and reality

A photographic portrait by Kerry Dundas captures the contemplative mind of visionary painter Godfrey Miller.

Ellyse Perry, 2018

Stuart Miller

Portrait, inkjet print on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2019

Portrait of Jerry Ellis, 1999

Portrait, oil on Belgian linen

Gift of BHP Billiton 2003. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait of Susan Crennan, 2017

Portrait, oil on linen

Gift of the Hon. Susan Crennan AC KC 2018. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Study for portrait of Sir Rupert 'Dick" Hamer', 2009

Sir Leslie Ward, Vanity Fair Magazine

Portrait, oil on linen

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Sir Andrew Grimwade CBE 2018
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

First Conservative Whip (Sir Alexander Fuller-Acland-Hood Bart MP), 1903

Portrait, chromolithograph on paper

Gift of Ronald Walker 2002

a Traveller (2nd Baron Lamington), 1892

Sir Leslie Ward, Vanity Fair Magazine

Portrait, chromolithograph on paper

Purchased 2015

Judicial portraits

Magazine article by Leslie Moran, 2007

Leslie Moran investigates the portraits of judges in the National Portrait Gallery's collection.

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882, page 2

Unknown artist Publisher Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News

Portrait, sepia toned strip proof on paper

No Fixed Address from 'Rock Against Racism' concert, Redfern

No Fixed Address from 'Rock Against Racism' concert, Redfern, 1980

Juno Gemes

Gift of the artist 2021. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Boniface and Clinton, c. 2000

Penny Tweedie

Portrait, engravings on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2004

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882, 1882

an unknown artist

Purchased 2009

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention, Sydney 1891 from Australasia Illustrated, 1891

an unknown artist

Portrait, engraving on paper (4 sheets)

Purchased 2009

Leith Alexander

Finalist interviews

An interview with Leith Alexander, Finalist in the Living Memory National Photographic Portrait Prize.

Levi Miller on the set of "Red Dog: True Blue", 2015

by David Darcy

Surfer Rusty Miller

Francis Cloake

Simon Griffiths

Simon Griffiths has been acclaimed in numerous publications as Australia's leading food and garden photographer.

1 portrait in the collection

Yvonne Alexander, Bar Maid, Sydney, 2022

Ingvar Kenne

Captain William Kinghorne

William Kinghorne (1796-1878) came to the colonies from Scotland some time before 1824.

1 portrait in the collection

Hong Fu

Vox pops

My subject, he is a writer. He is a big name, very famous writer, Alex Miller, age 85.

Caroline Barton, 2006

by Jim Rolon

Previous exhibition, 2000

Sporting Archibald

Celebrating the focus on sport during 2000, this special exhibition features our national sporting heroes and heroines immortalised on canvas

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2016

Previous exhibition, 2016

The National Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition is selected from a national field of entries, reflecting the distinctive vision of Australia's aspiring and professional portrait photographers and the unique nature of their subjects.

A D. Colquhoun

A D (Archibald Douglas) Colquhoun studied art with his father Alexander, a Glasgow-born painter and critic living in Melbourne, and also at the NGV School and in classes with Max Meldrum.

1 portrait in the collection

Future Australian, 2009

by Robin Sellick

Australia's America's Cup challengers

A magnificent rivalry

General content

Alexander (Jock) Sturrock and Alan Bond

Danelle Bergstrom

Previous exhibition, 2022

Danelle Bergstrom (b. 1957) was born in Sydney. She studied art and art education at the Julian Ashton school (1974-1979) and at Alexander Mackie CAE.

2 portraits in the collection

Darling Portrait Prize 2022

The Darling Portrait Prize is a biennial national prize for Australian portrait painting honouring the legacy of Mr L Gordon Darling AC CMG (1921-2015). The winner receives a cash prize of $75,000.

Irving Penn

Irving Penn trained in commercial art at the Philadelphia Museum School of Art while working as a freelance artist at Harper's Bazaar from 1937 to 1939.

1 portrait in the collection

Bassano Ltd

The Bassano studios operated from 1850, when photographer Alexander Bassano (1829-1913) opened premises in Regent Street, London.

2 portraits in the collection

Nick Enright AM

Nick Enright (1950-2003), playwright and screenwriter, attended Sydney University and the New York University School of the Arts before establishing himself as a dramatist with plays such as Summer Rain and Mongrels.

2 portraits in the collection

Tom Glover

English-born Thomas Ellis Glover moved to New Zealand as a child and by his early twenties was working as a cartoonist, court reporter and journalist.

10 portraits in the collection

Dean Beletich

Previous exhibition, 2005

Dean Beletich (b. 1968), artist and photographer, studied at Newcastle Art School, the National Art School Sydney and the University of Newcastle from 1987 to 1991.

1 portrait in the collection

Kylie

An Exhibition

Kylie Minogue, one of Australia's most famous cultural exports is now the subject of her own exhibition.

Avril Thomas

Avril Thomas (b. 1956), artist, was born in Malaysia and went to boarding school in Scotland and Australia.

2 portraits in the collection

A & G Taylor

Photographers Andrew Taylor and George Taylor opened their first studio in Cannon Street in east London in 1866.

1 portrait in the collection

Fay Bottrell

Fay Bottrell (b. 1927) textile artist and teacher, collaborated with Wessley Stacey on the book The Artist Craftsman in Australia: Aspects of Sensibility in 1972.

1 portrait in the collection

Bart Willoughby

Bart Willoughby (b. 1960) is a Pitjantjantjara and Mirning singer/songwriter who is one of the Stolen Generations.

2 portraits in the collection

Nick Enright, c. 1976 (printed 2004)

Robert McFarlane

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Howard Florey Baron Florey of Adelaide and Marston, OM KBE FRS

Sir Howard Florey OM KBE FRS FAA (1898–1968) pioneered the development and use of antibiotics.

2 portraits in the collection

William Walford

Francis William Barnard Walford (1821–1896), businessman and landowner, was born in Hobart, the son of Barnard Walford (1801–1846), a publican and victualler; and the grandson of Barnard Walford senior (c.

1 portrait in the collection

Tania Verstak, 1962

Jozef Vissel

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

Tania Verstak, 1962 (printed 2006)

Jozef Vissel

Portrait, pastel and chalk on paper laid down on cotton over Cedar strainer

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2006

Jessie Whyte, c. 1840

Thomas Bock

Purchased 2017

Sir John Franklin, c. 1845

D F. Murphy after E P. Hardy

Portrait, engraving on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

John Shortland

John Shortland (1739-1803), naval officer, was a member of a family of which six members were associated with the colonisation of Australia and New Zealand.

1 portrait in the collection

Dora Byrne

Dora was the fourth child of Doretta and Stuart Alexander, her father the owner of a farming property near Albury, New South Wales.

1 portrait in the collection

Mel Gibson AO

Mel Gibson (b. 1956), actor, was born in New York state, the sixth of eleven children of a railroad brakeman and an Australian opera singer.

1 portrait in the collection

The Bushranger Tragedy (from The Australasian Sketcher, 23 November 1878)

Thomas McIntyre

A police party comprising Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan, Scanlan and McIntyre was dispatched to capture the Kelly gang in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Dan Kelly

A police party comprising Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan, Scanlan and McIntyre was dispatched to capture the Kelly gang in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Greg Warburton

Greg Warburton (1952–2022) trained at Hornsby Technical College and Alexander Mackie College in the 1970s.

2 portraits in the collection

Sergeant Michael Kennedy

A police party comprising Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan, Scanlan and McIntyre was dispatched to capture the Kelly gang in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Lonigan

A police party comprising Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan, Scanlan and McIntyre was dispatched to capture the Kelly gang in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Michael Scanlan

A police party comprising Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan, Scanlan and McIntyre was dispatched to capture the Kelly gang in 1878.

1 portrait in the collection

Les Murray AO

Portrait, albumen paper carte de visite

Leslie Allan ‘Les’ Murray AO (1938-2019) was acknowledged during his lifetime as one of the great poets writing in English.

4 portraits in the collection

Archbishop James Goold, c. 1870

Archibald McDonald

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Sir William John Macleay

Sir William John Macleay (1820-1891), pastoralist, politician, collector and promoter of science, had just begun to study medicine in his native Scotland when family circumstances dictated his migration to New South Wales.

1 portrait in the collection

Jill Neville

Portrait, bromide fibre print

Jill Neville (1932–1997), writer and critic, grew up in Sydney and attended a Blue Mountains boarding school.

1 portrait in the collection

Les Murray, 2003

Norman McBeath

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Norman McBeath 2011

Les Murray, 1995

David Naseby

Purchased with funds provided by the Basil Bressler Bequest 2001

Hugh Kingsley Ward

Hugh Kingsley Ward MC (1887-1972), bacteriologist, was educated at Sydney Grammar and the University of Sydney before being awarded the Rhodes Scholarship in 1911 and proceeding to Oxford.

1 portrait in the collection

Rev. Edward Puckle

Theresa Walker after David D'Angers

The Reverend Edward Puckle (c. 1800-1898), Anglican clergyman, took holy orders in Exeter and officiated in Cornwall before sailing on the Randolph to Canterbury, NZ in 1850.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir John Franklin, c. 1846

Portrait, cast wax

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Sir John Franklin

Sir John Franklin (1786-1847), Arctic explorer and governor, served under Matthew Flinders on the Investigator and later said that this experience fired his passion for exploration.

5 portraits in the collection

Bart Willoughby, c. 2000

Penny Tweedie

Portrait, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Gift of the artist 2004

Fay Bottrell, 1981

David Campbell

Gift of Elizabeth Campbell-MacKenzie on behalf of the family of David Campbell 2012

Richard Nicoll

Richard Nicoll (1977‒2016), fashion designer, was born in London but spent much of his childhood in Perth.

1 portrait in the collection

Bart Willoughby (No Fixed Address) at 'The National Land Rights Action' march

Bart Willoughby (No Fixed Address) at 'The National Land Rights Action' march, 1982

Juno Gemes

Jean Coutant after Jacques Etienne Victor Arago

Gift of the artist 2021. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Nlle. Holland Port Jackson: Sauvages des environs de Sydney: Nani, Taran, Abinghou, Broten, Timbere

Nlle. Holland Port Jackson: Sauvages des environs de Sydney: Nani, Taran, Abinghou, Broten, Timbere, 1825

Portrait, line engraving on paper

Purchased 2015

Jacques Arago, c. 1830s

Nicolas Maurin, Alexandre Sixdeniers

Portrait, engraving on paper

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2009

David Campbell

David Campbell (1952–1984) decided to become an artist while a student at Erina High on the New South Wales Central Coast.

3 portraits in the collection

Kerrie Lester

Kerrie Lester (1953–2016) became well-known as a portraitist for her playful, textured, highly coloured works that appeared regularly in the Archibald and Portia Geach exhibitions of the late 1980s and the 1990s.

6 portraits in the collection

Stan de Teliga, 1973

Vaike Liibus

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Liibus family 2015

Michael Boddy

Michael Boddy (1934–2014), writer and actor, was born in England and educated at Cambridge before arriving in Australia as a 'ten quid migrant' in 1960.

2 portraits in the collection

Magda Szubanski AO

Magda Szubanski AO (b. 1961), actor and writer, was born in Liverpool, England and moved to Australia when she was four.

1 portrait in the collection

Alex Mitchell

Portrait, fibre-tipped pen on paper

Alexander George Mitchell (1911-1997), academic, studied English literature and language at the University of Sydney and the University of London before joining the English department of the University of Sydney, where he assumed the McCaughey Chair of Early English Literature and Language in 1947.

1 portrait in the collection

Lord Florey, c. 1966

Louis Kahan AO

Purchased 1998

The Bushranger Tragedy (from The Australasian Sketcher, 23 November 1878), 1878

an unknown artist, The Australasian Sketcher

Portrait, wood engraving on paper

Purchased 2003

John Coburn, 1974

Vaike Liibus

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Liibus family 2015

Bart Cummings AM

James Bartholomew (Bart) Cummings OAM (1927-2015) was Australia's most successful thoroughbred racehorse trainer.

1 portrait in the collection

2022 Annual Appeal

Annual Appeal

In 2022 the Annual Appeal was focussed on Mayatjara by Robert Fielding, a series of 24 photographs of Elders of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara community.

Bob Ellis

Portrait, cast bronze medallion on wood plaque

Bob Ellis (1942-2016) was a journalist, columnist, screenwriter, film director and playwright.

3 portraits in the collection

Sir Howard Florey OM KBE FRS FAA, 1985

Andor Meszaros

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Dr Ray Marginson AM 2001

Stan Grant

Stan Grant (b. 1963), a proud Wiradjuri man born in Griffith, New South Wales, grew up wanting to be a journalist.

1 portrait in the collection

Elizabeth Walford

1 portrait in the collection

Robert Hannaford AM

Robert Hannaford AM (b. 1944), a largely self-taught artist, grew up on his family farm near the small South Australian town of Riverton before working as political cartoonist for the Adelaide Advertiser from 1964 to 1967.

6 portraits in the collection

Jeffrey Samuels

Jeffrey Samuels (b. 1956), a Ngiyampaa/Ngemba painter, illustrator, designer, mixed-media artist and printmaker, is one of the Stolen Generations and seeks to affirm his Aboriginal identity and cultural heritage through his work.

2 portraits in the collection

James Houston

Scoring first prize in New South Wales for Art in the 1983 HSC was a signal that a talented creative career lay ahead and this has indeed proven the case.

2 portraits in the collection

Maurice Felton

Maurice Appleby Felton (1803-1842) arrived in Sydney with his wife and four children in late 1839 as surgeon to the immigrant ship the Royal Admiral.

3 portraits in the collection

NPPP 2009 exhibition essay

General content

Dr Christopher Chapman, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2009 Prize.

Self portrait

Sir Anthony van Dyck

Thomas Bock

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Thomas Bock, artist, printmaker and photographer, is believed to have been born at Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham, in 1790.

3 portraits in the collection

John Richard Tindale, 1841

Maurice Felton

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Mary Tindale, 1841

Maurice Felton

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

George Case

Archived media releases 2018

George Case (life dates unknown) and his wife Grace Egerton (d. 1881), variety performers, made several successful tours of Australia in the 1860s and 1870s, although the precise dates of their visits are unknown.

1 portrait in the collection

The Honourable Bob Hawke savouring a strawberry milkshake, 2017 by Harold David

Harold David Takes out the People’s Choice Award for this year’s National Photographic Portrait Prize

8 June 2018

The votes are in and the National Portrait Gallery is pleased to announce The Honourable Bob Hawke savouring a strawberry milkshake by Harold David is the people’s choice for the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018.

MacKenzie family silhouette, 1846

Samuel Metford

Portrait, brush and ink, pen and ink, stencil cut-out with watercolour highlights on paper

Gift of the Estate of Nancy Wiseman 2007

Annual Appeal

Listed by year

Honour board

David Strachan

Australian Painters Photographed by R. Ian Lloyd

David Strachan (1919–1970), painter and printmaker, was educated at Geelong Grammar School and then studied art at the Slade School in London.

2 portraits in the collection

Studio

Previous exhibition, 2007

Studio: Australian Painters Photographed by R

John Dunn

Archived media releases 2017

John Dunn (1802-1894), flour miller and philanthropist, eked out a mean living as a mill manager in England before migrating to South Australia with his wife and son in 1840.

1 portrait in the collection

Copeman, gardener, Great Yarmouth by John Dempsey

Calling all family history buffs

3 July 2017

The National Portrait Gallery is calling on family history enthusiasts and amateur historians to tell it more about the people in its new show, Dempsey’s People: A folio of British street portraits from 1824-1844.

Caroline Jones, 1978

David Campbell

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2008

Gift of Elizabeth Campbell-MacKenzie on behalf of the family of David Campbell 2012

The bright-eyed Mariner

A new colonial portrait brings a zealous captain near.

Masters of Fare

Chefs, winemakers, providores

Previous exhibition, 2004

Masters of fare: chefs, winemakers, providores celebrates men and women who have championed the unique culinary characteristics and produce of Australia, enriching our lives with new ideas and new flavours over the past forty years.

Sir Edward Wheewall Holden

Previous exhibition, 2018

Sir Edward Wheewall Holden (1885-1947), industrialist and politician, was the son of Henry Holden, industrialist and civic leader, and the grandson of James Alexander Holden, Adelaide leather and saddlery business owner.

1 portrait in the collection

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018

The exhibition is selected from a national field of entries, reflecting the distinctive vision of Australia's aspiring and professional portrait photographers and the unique nature of their subjects.

Dora Byrne, 1951

Richard von Marientreu

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Estate of Leslie Walford AM 2013

Interiors

Christopher Chapman previews the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009.

Miss Frances Samuel, 1840

Maurice Felton

Archived media releases 2017

Purchased 2011

Billy the match man, Liverpool, 1844 by John Dempsey

Rare Set of Watercolour Paintings on Display for the First Time

15 June 2017

A rare and enchanting collection of 52 portraits of British street people will be on display for the first time in the National Portrait Gallery’s winter show, Dempsey’s People: a folio of British street portraits 1824-1844.

Mr Movies - Bill Collins OAM, 2009

Evert Ploeg

Portrait, oil on linen

Gift of Joan Collins and the Todd-Wilson family in memory of Bill Collins 2019. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Revd Dr Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch, c.1795 by Sir Henry Raeburn

Great Scots

Magazine article by Diana O'Neil, 2017

Diana O’Neil samples the tartan treats on offer in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

Madame Sibly, Phrenologist and Mesmerist

Madame Sibly, Phrenologist and Mesmerist, c. 1870

James E. Bray

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite photograph

Purchased 2017

Prince William of Wales, by Mario Testino, 2003 publ. September 2003.
Credit: Mario Testino

Vanity Fair Portraits

Photographs 1913-2008

Previous exhibition, 2009

Vanity Fair Portraits traces the birth and evolution of photographic portraiture through the archives of Vanity Fair magazine.

Little John of Colchester, a poor lunatic, c.1823 by John Dempsey

Dempsey's people

Archived media releases 2018

Those of you who are active in social media circles may be aware that through the past week I have unleashed a blitz on Facebook and Instagram in connection with our new winter exhibition Dempsey’s People: A Folio of British Street Portraits, 1824−1844.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018

8 March 2018

Images for media use will be available from 8 March 2018.

Missing Persons

Thomas Woolner in Australia

Previous exhibition, 2003

Desperately seeking Woolner medallions

Australians in Hollywood

Although perceived to be a recent phenomenon, the 'Aussie invasion' of Hollywood can actually be traced as far back as the early 1900s

John Flaus

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

John Flaus (b. 1934) is an Australian broadcaster, actor, script editor and lecturer, known for Mary and Max (2009), Trust Frank (2020) and Tracks (2013).

1 portrait in the collection

Penn on paper

Michael Desmond discusses Irving Penn's photographic portrait of Nicole Kidman.

Insightful

Magazine article by Robert McFarlane, 2004

Henri-Cartier-Bresson invented the grammar for photographing life in the 20th century.

Unboxed

Magazine article by Sandra Bruce, 2022

Sandra Bruce explores a new acquisition that has within it a story of interconnectivities in the Australian art world.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023

Previous exhibition, 2023

The exhibition is selected from a national field of entries, reflecting the distinctive vision of Australia's aspiring and professional portrait photographers and the unique nature of their subjects.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2022

Previous exhibition, 2022

The exhibition is selected from a national field of entries, reflecting the distinctive vision of Australia's aspiring and professional portrait photographers and the unique nature of their subjects.

Sideshow Alley

Infamy, the macabre & the portrait

Previous exhibition, 2015

Death masks, post-mortem drawings and other spooky and disquieting portraits... Come and see how portraits of infamous Australians were used in the 19th century.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009

Previous exhibition, 2009

In its second year at the National Portrait Gallery, and for the first time touring to other venues, the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009 continues to present surprising perspectives on the nature of contemporary portrait photography.

Australians in Hollywood

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2003

The exhibition Australians in Hollywood celebrated the achievements of Australians in the highly competitive American film industry.

Thomas Sutcliffe Mort and his wife Theresa

Husbands and Wives

Photographic Portraits from 19th Century Australia

Previous exhibition, 2010

'I have just been to my dressing case to take a peep at you.

Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson AC CVO MBE

Spikes: then and now

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

As part of its ongoing program of commissions of portraits of prominent Australians, the National Portrait Gallery has unveiled a portrait of Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson by South Australian artist Avril Thomas.

Uncommon Australians

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

Previous exhibition, 2015

This exhibition showcases portraits acquired through the generosity of the National Portrait Gallery’s Founding Patrons, L Gordon Darling AC CMG and Marilyn Darling AC.

Diamond Doll

Magazine article by Karen Vickery, 2016

Karen Vickery delights in a thespian thread of the Australian yarn.

The 2023 National Photographic Portrait Prize

16 June 2023

Media

Shea Kirk’s portrait of friend and fellow-artist Emma Armstrong-Porter has won the 2023 National Photographic Portrait Prize.

Painter John Brack with Professor Alex Mitchell and Sir Garfield Barwick, c. 1977

Jozef Vissel

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Gift of the Jozef Vissel 2015

Promise Fulfilled

The life and achievements of Sir Edward Holden, who is represented in the portrait collection by a bust created by Leslie Bowles.

Reflections on castles

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2004

Andrew Sayers describes the unique characteristics of the international band of portrait galleries.

Unheroic Materialism: little harmless fragments of memory and association: a portrait of Angus Trumble, 2019 Evert Ploeg

The last word

Magazine article by Dr David Hansen, 2022

David Hansen’s tribute to his close friend, prince of words and former National Portrait Gallery director, the late Angus Trumble.

Sir Thomas Gore-Browne, 1864

J Walch & Sons

Portrait, tinted lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

Poets' Portraits

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

The Portrait Gallery's paintings of two poets, Les Murray and Peter Porter, demonstrate two very different artists' responses to the challenge of representing more than usually sensitive and imaginative men.

International issue

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

Michael Desmond looks at the history of the Vanity Fair magazine in conjunction with the exhibition Vanity Fair Portraits: Photographs 1913-2008

Earth to earth

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

Dr Sarah Engledow discusses the recent gift of works by David Campbell.

Expect the unexpected

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2019

Joanna Gilmour revels in accidental artist Charles Rodius’ nineteenth century renderings of Indigenous peoples.

More cash than dash

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2011

Joanna Gilmour describes how colonial portraitists found the perfect market among social status seeking Sydneysiders.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Honour board

School portraits

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2008

Inga Walton sheds light on a portraiture collection usually only seen by students and teachers at Melbourne University.

Alexander Pearce
executed for murder
July 19th 1824

Public hanging

As a convict Thomas Bock was required to sketch executed murders for science; as a free man, fashionable society portraits.

Hyperversity

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Dr Sarah Engledow writes about the larger-than-life Australian performance artist, Leigh Bowery.

Forest Creek, Mount Alexander Diggings, 1852 by S. T. Gill

The Rothschilds, the Montefiores, and the Victorian Gold Rush