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Australian Portraits

In this ten-part series on Australian portraits, Angus Trumble and Fiona Gruber hold a wide-ranging, thought-provoking and often unexpected face-off with history and culture.

Angus Trumble

Members of the Board, Foundation and staff of the National Portrait Gallery are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Angus Trumble.

Statement from Mr Angus Trumble

Today, Mr Angus Trumble, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, expanded on his reasons for removing the photographic portrait of Indonesian President Joko Widodo from exhibition.

Backstage on the way to the top

Living for the moment

Oz Rock

Two of the music industry’s highest-selling performers originated in suburban Australia. The Bee Gees started out in Brisbane, for instance, and AC/DC played their first gigs at a nightclub in inner Sydney.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2015

National Portrait Gallery Director Angus Trumble invites media to the announcement of the winner and exhibition preview for the 2015 National Photographic Portrait Prize.

Trumbology

Angus' blog posts from 2015–2018

Museum Dance Off 2016

Angus stars in the Gallery's 2016 entry to the international Museum Dance Off.

Arcadia media information

Press releases and image downloads for media.

Capital Cool

Outsiders tend to give Canberra a bad rap: sterile, plagued by politicians, a comatose capital for professionals and academics. Nick Cave once said he didn’t like the city because there were too many punks.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2017

Save the date: National Portrait Gallery Director Angus Trumble invites media to the announcement of the winner and exhibition preview for the 2017 National Photographic Portrait Prize on 31 March.

National Portrait Gallery Director's tenure ends in triumph

National Portrait Gallery Director Angus Trumble is ending his five-year tenure with a flourish, after announcing that Gallery publication Dempsey’s People: A Folio of British Street Portraits 1824-1844 has been awarded the 2018 William MB Berger Prize for British Art History.

American dream leads to tragic end

Young love lost, treasured

Grow the Portrait Gallery of Australia

The Portrait Gallery is calling for contributions to support in the acquisition of superb portraits for the national collection.

New partnership with Stripy Sock

We have a new partnership with Canberra-based leading mobile application development consultancy, Stripy Sock.

National Portrait Gallery Director announced

The National Portrait Gallery welcomes Angus Trumble

Rugby great unveiled

A new portrait commission of Australian Rugby great, Ken Catchpole OAM by Gary Grealy will be officially unveiled on 3 December.

Larry Clark

Larry Clark's black-and-white documentary images of young outsiders reveal raw feelings. 

Treading Water, 2017

Finalist, DPA 2017
Single channel digital video

The Murdoch

Sport was a potent means by which, in the lead up to Federation, Australians began to assert a sense of themselves as youthful, manly and athletic – the products of an equally young and virile new nation.

Last week to vote for your favourite portrait

The National Portrait Gallery’s National Photographic Portrait Prize 2015 will close Monday 8 June 2015, this is the last week to visit the exhibition in Canberra and vote for your favourite portrait in the People’s Choice.

Richard Walley OAM honoured in new Portrait Gallery commission

A new commissioned portrait funded by the Gallery’s Foundation will be launched at Murdoch University in Perth tonight, Wednesday 2 September.

Portrait 50 hits the shelves

With contributions from Julia Gillard, Fiona Gruber, and Dr Karl James, the National Portrait Gallery’s 50th edition of Portrait has something for everyone.

Gallery unveils Portrait of Mark Ella

Last night in Sydney, the National Portrait Gallery unveiled a newly commissioned portrait of Australian sporting legend Mark Ella AM.

Artist in residence creates portraits using brainwave zctivity

Digital media artist, George Khut, is creating a spectacular form of digital portraiture involving public participants.

The Hinders: doyens of Australian modernism

Progressive partnership

Past directors

Directors of the National Portrait Gallery from 1998 to today.

To coin a (farewell) phrase

A penny for their thoughts

Shirley Purdie

Born: 1947, Gilbun – Mabel Downs Station, WA
Works: Warmun, WA

Philanthropic donations enable otherwise unobtainable acquisition

A magnanimous portrait of Helena Rubinstein has been acquired for the National Portrait Gallery’s collection.

Welcome home, Captain Bligh

The National Portrait Gallery will, next Tuesday, unveil an exciting new acquisition of irrefutable importance to all Australians. Portrait of William Bligh, in master’s uniform c. 1776, attributed to John Webber, is one of the earliest portraits of the contentious, historical figure, and extends the Gallery’s remarkable collection of early colonial portraits.

Portrait Gallery benefits from generous Boxer bequest

Canberran and modernist art collector Alan Boxer has generously bequeathed two works by artists Arthur Boyd and Jenny Sages to the National Portrait Gallery.

Portrait Gallery unveils new commission

The National Portrait Gallery unveiled its most recent portrait commission for the collection on Thursday 30 November 2017.

Blek Bala MJ, 2017

Finalist, DPA 2017
Single channel HD digital video

Arthur Boyd’s Mysterious Eyes

The National Portrait Gallery has unveiled a focus exhibition of captivating portraits by renowned artist Arthur Boyd, titled Mysterious eyes: Arthur Boyd portraits from 1945.

Equation of a life – a portrait of Derek Denton

The National Portrait Gallery, has welcomed the newest portrait commission of Emeritus Professor Derek Denton AC by Evert Ploeg.

Alex Frayne

An interview with the photographer.

Donors

One Millionth Visitor to Portrait Gallery Touring Program

The National Portrait Gallery is delighted to announce the Gallery’s Touring Exhibitions Program has welcomed its one millionth visitor.

New Chief Patron for the National Portrait Gallery

Mrs Lucy Hughes Turnbull AO has accepted an invitation to become the new Chief Patron of the National Portrait Gallery. 

To Look Away – Tilda, 2015

Finalist, DPA 2016

Jaq Grantford

A self-portrait from a different time, feels like a different time, even though it's only a couple of years ago or one and a half years, if that, and it was my commentary on COVID and how I was feeling about it at the time.

Cat Leedon

This was taken as part of a series, documenting my, I call it my shit show roller coaster.

Dr Gene Sherman AM announces resignation from the National Portrait Gallery Board

It is with deep regret, but great pride, that the National Portrait Gallery acknowledges the decision of its Deputy Chairman to resign from the Gallery’s Board, to focus on a new international role as co-Chair of the Tate Asia Pacific Acquisitions Committee.

Masters of Modern Indonesian Portraiture

Press releases for media

Oz Origins

Australia’s passion for rock ‘n roll was kindled by American and British acts in the 1950s and 60s. The novel genre’s driving, licentious rhythms and voices captured imaginations and libidos, not to mention aspiring young musicians.

Wayne Quilliam

The important part about it is is where it was captured. That's the Laura Quinkan Dance Festival, where our remote communities gather every two years to celebrate culture, to share knowledge, and to share stories.

Rick Amor 21 Portraits

Press releases and image downloads for media.

Macquarie Digital Portraiture Award 2015 finalists announced

The National Portrait Gallery have selected the finalists for the Macquarie Digital Portraiture Award 2015.

National Portrait Gallery to undergo renovation work

The National Portrait Gallery will undergo renovation works in 2019 to maintain the integrity of its building and the Gallery’s collection of prized artworks.

Collier Schorr

This is the first time Collier Schorr's photographs, which explore gender and identity, have been shown in Australia.

Boxer, Blake Travers, 2017

Finalist, DPA 2017
Single channel HD digital video

Younger Australians more engaged with arts and history

The second annual brand-awareness snapshot of the National Portrait Gallery is again positive, with indicators moving in the right direction – for the Gallery and for Australia’s cultural engagement.

David McAllister to join National Portrait Gallery collection

Artistic Director of The Australian Ballet, David McAllister AM will join the Portrait Gallery’s national collection in a newly-commissioned portrait taken by illustrious Australian photographer, Peter Brew-Bevan.

Learning programs

Unique experiences and programs for enquiring young minds, teachers and lifelong learners.

‘Never break this heart of stone’

Desired by millions

The artist and the doctor

Art, war, scandal

Feather voted the people’s favourite

The National Portrait Gallery is thrilled to announce that the People’s Choice award for this year’s National Photographic Portrait Prize goes to Natalie Grono from Byron Bay for her photograph Feather and the Goddess Pool 2014.

The most material advantages

A one-in-a-thousand woman

Entry guidelines 2024

Read the full requirements for entering the prize.

The actor, the artist, her life and her fantasies

Feeling sexy

Who is Lillie Roberts?

Talented wife for a talented husband

Starstruck: Australian Movie Portraits opens

Visitors will be left in awe with the National Portrait Gallery and National Film and Sound Archive of Australia’s (NFSA) new star-studded exhibition, Starstruck: Australian Movie Portraits. 

The Legend of Ruby and Archie

A bond in song

Twenty new portraits marking Portrait Gallery’s twentieth birthday

To celebrate the National Portrait Gallery’s twentieth anniversary as an institution, twenty portraits of outstanding Australian individuals have been commissioned for the permanent collection. This is the largest undertaking for the Gallery’s commissioning program in its twenty-year existence.

An international troupe of two

Office romance

Of Burke, Wills ... and wills

Infatuation and (ill-fated) exploration

All that fall artist interviews

Lawrence English, Ellis Hutch and Lee Grant talk about the works they created for All that fall.

National Portrait Gallery unveils twenty new portrait commissions to celebrate twenty years

The National Portrait Gallery has unveiled twenty new portrait commissions of Australian leaders and individualists as part of its twentieth birthday celebrations in a new exhibition, 20/20: Celebrating twenty years with twenty new portrait commissions.

Canon Australia takes National Photographic Portrait Prize first place to new heights

Entries are now open for the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2019, with the winner set to receive $52,000 in cash and prizes, including superb contributions from new sponsor, Canon Australia.

A photographer’s glamorous friends

Community, arts, activism

Arianne McNaught

I think the most important thing in capturing candid shots is to never take the photo when people are expecting you to press the shutter. The more poignant moments are not the stock standard images of people looking at the camera smiling but after or before when they are really interacting with each other.

Ben McNamara

This is Marissa Gallagher from Kintore, which if you're in Alice Springs, just go west until the WA border, just before that, a traditional area of Pintupi mob.

Amrita Hepi

Bundjulung/Ngapuhi woman Amrita Hepi’s work considers the body’s relationship to personal histories and archive, and investigates dance as social function.

Angelica Mesiti

Internationally renowned, Paris-based artist Angelica Mesiti creates video installations that are absorbing and profound experiences for audiences.

Portrait of Rosie Batty Unveiled at Portrait Gallery

The National Portrait Gallery has unveiled a newly commissioned portrait of Australian domestic violence campaigner and 2015 Australian of the Year Rosie Batty.

Ms Karen Quinlan appointed to lead the NPGA

The Board of the National Portrait Gallery of Australia is delighted to announce the appointment of Ms Karen Quinlan as its incoming Director.

Ngarranggarni

The third row of paintings come from Ngarranggarni (Dreaming).

Storytelling

The fourth row of paintings interweave Ngarranggarni, memories, relationships and Country.

Janet Dawson

When soulmates Janet Dawson and Michael Boddy moved from Sydney to a property, Boddy was clear about why: ‘Our marriage is one long conversation - we moved to the bush so we could talk to each other without so many interruptions.’

Tan Le, 2018

Commissioned with funds provided by the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2018

Yang Na

Born 1983, Chongqing, Sichuan Province. Lives and works in Beijing.

Memories

The second row of paintings recall stories relating to specific sites, experiences and activities.

L. Gordon Darling AC CMG

The Chairman, Board, Director and all the Staff of the National Portrait Gallery mourn the loss of our Founding Patron, who died peacefully in Melbourne this morning. He was 94.

Out of the blocks

Dawn Fraser, Lionel Rose, Shane Gould and Cathy Freeman

National arts and history? Yes, please

Recent research shows that two thirds of all Australians have a sterling interest in the arts and Australian history. This is just one of the promising findings to arise from the National Portrait Gallery’s commissioned snapshot of its national brand awareness, via a nationally representative survey.

Arcadia: Sound of the sea

One night in the spring of 1970 in an old house in Whale Beach, north of Sydney, John Witzig, Albe Falzon and David Elfick put together the first issue of Tracks, playing Neil Young’s album Harvest over and over again as they pasted up galleys of type.

All the world's a stage

Joan Sutherland, Robert Helpmann and Raigh Roe

NPPP 2009 exhibition essay

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

Nusra Latif Qureshi

Born: 1973, Lahore, Pakistan
Works: Melbourne

2022 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.

Leah King-Smith

Born: 1957, Gympie, QLD
Works: Brisbane

Elvis at 21 media information

Press releases and images downloads for media.

Matthew Abbott

An interview with the photographer.

Bree Pickering appointed Director of the National Portrait Gallery

The Board of the National Portrait Gallery of Australia announced the appointment of Bree Pickering to the role of Director.

Ahmad Sabra

We were in Gaza shooting a documentary and we had heard about the orphanages and wanted to visit and document some of the children who had lost parents during the wars in Gaza.

Tough & Tender Media Release

Photographs from internationally acclaimed artists Robert Mapplethorpe, Larry Clark, Nan Goldin, Collier Schorr and Chris Burden along with contemporary Australian artists, Rozalind Drummond and Warwick Baker will call the National Portrait Gallery home during our extraordinary winter exhibition Tough and Tender.

Swimming every day

Dr Christopher Chapman, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2015 Prize.

Adrian Brown

An interview with the photographer.

Andrew Sayers AM FAHA

The Chairman, Board, Director and staff mourn the loss of the National Portrait Gallery's inaugural director.

Louise Whelan

I met Kaloti Parmjit the day I took the photo. I first visited the Sikh temple in the suburb of Glenwood to take photos as part of a social documentary project I'm undertaking for the State Library of NSW.

New app gets kids excited about portraits at the National Portrait Gallery

The National Portrait Gallery has officially launched a new digital interactive Gallery experience called Headhunt!, the first app of its kind being used in museums and galleries. Headhunt! is a tablet-based app for visitors aged 7-15 that encourages children to take the lead and independently explore the Gallery.

More about the National Photographic Portrait Prize

Comments from our judges and information about entering the 2017 Prize.

Pets of all types take over the National Portrait Gallery

It is not every day that a national gallery turns its walls over to the animal companions that bring unconditional love and joy to their owners but this summer we have opened the doors to 15 contemporary artists with very different ways of depicting our furry, feathered and scaled pets.

Rugby great a fine addition to Portrait Gallery Collection

A portrait of Australian rugby great, Dr Mark Loane AM MBBS FRANZO FRACS, is the latest addition to the National Portrait Gallery’s permanent collection. The work is the final in a series of three commissioned portraits of Australian rugby luminaries funded by Gallery benefactor, Mr Patrick Corrigan AM.

Heather Corrigan

The lovely faces in my photograph are that of my best friends. Some I have only known for a couple of months, others for most of my life. For me, recreating a family portrait with individuals I love was supremely important. I was reconstructing a photo of people I cherish with people I adore.

Definitions

Access is about creating the necessary conditions for all individuals and organisations to use services, facilities, programs and employment opportunities.

Liu Wei

Born 1965 in Beijing. Lives and works in Beijing.

Graeme Drendel

I like talking about Drendel’s pictures as if they expressed dreams of my own.

Myles Nelson

It was definitely a candid encounter as was the expression on the face. It was constructed insofar as the image was deliberately taken from a distance so as to minimize intrusion and to magnify the effect of the image.

Janet Tavener

Mikala is the eldest of my three daughters. I have photographed her on many an occasion. Needless to say we are both extremely at home with the practice.

Some women you may not know

‘Everybody’s lives are built by so many influences, and for me, it is writers, artists and activists who have influenced how I think about the world.’

Katherine Bennett

The lady in the centre of this photograph is my partner's Granny. So we are almost directly related, and here, as with all photographic work. I am in a state of exchange though I think only directly, with one of the women!

Paul Kelly and The Portraits media information

Paul Kelly & The Portraits presents a multifaceted image of the performer over the course of his career.

Nikki Toole

An interview with the photographer.

Provocative talks on Saturdays in September

Join The Saturday Paper’s chief political correspondent, Karen Middleton, for A Month of Saturdays – afternoon conversations bringing current affairs experts to the Gallery for engaging, real-time discussions about the topics that matter.

Nusra Latif Qureshi

Nusra Latif Qureshi was born in Pakistan in 1973 and originally trained in the traditional art of Mughal miniature (musaviri) paintings.

Fang Lijun

Born 1963, Handan, Hebei Province China. Lives and works in Beijing.

Reflections

All that fall: Sacrifice, life and loss in the First World War exhibition co-curators Dr Anne Sanders and Dr Christopher Chapman reflect on the evolution of the Gallery’s Anzac Centenary exhibition.

Yu Hong

Born 1966 in Beijing, China. Lives and works in Beijing.

Tim Fairfax, 2018

Commissioned with funds provided by The Calvert-Jones Foundation 2018

Nicholas Paspaley Jnr, 2018

Commissioned with funds provided by Ross Adler AC 2018

The Bare story

Curator, Penny Grist, reveals how this exhibition came to be

Melanie Faith Dove

I had been watching Agnes with intrigue, her face and profile were so mesmerizing. On our final day together I pulled her aside and convinced her that she had such an amazing face that I needed to get a photograph for myself. It was very spontaneous in that I decided quickly how it would best look and shot it in only two frames.

Krystal Seigerman

The photograph was a brief, candid moment, which unfolded into a portrait. Peter and I were in Silverton, NSW, chatting as our students explored the town. The weak afternoon light suddenly became dramatic and defined, so I asked Peter if I could take his portrait.

Jessica Mauboy, 2018

Commissioned with funds provided by Sony Music Entertainment Australia 2018

Nadiah Bamadhaj

Born in Malaysia in 1968, to a Malaysian Muslim father and a New Zealander mother of Scottish descent Nadiah Bamadhaj studied Fine Arts in New Zealand, and is currently working on a PhD from Curtin University, Western Australia.

Winner announced for National Photographic Portrait Prize 2019

From an outstanding field of more than 3,000 entries, culminating in a shortlist of 39 exceptional finalists, the Winner and Highly Commended entries for this year’s National Photographic Portrait Prize have been named.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018 winner announced

Finalists have been eagerly awaiting the announcement of the Winner and Highly Commended for the National Photographic Portrait Prize since December. It is our pleasure to announce the Winner for 2018 is Lee Grant for her portrait titled Charlie and Highly Commended has been awarded to Filomena Rizzo for her portrait titled My Olivia.

The 1950s to the present day

Certain European leaders (needless to name) had the effect of making certain styles of facial hair decidedly undesirable in the years immediately after World War 2.

Our achievements to date

During the period 2018–20, the Gallery implemented our first Access Action Plan.

Simon Harsent

I like to think I'm an artist who uses photography as my medium, but I work commercially as a photographer and it's my full time occupation so I guess that defines me as a photographer or maybe a commercial artist?

Sharon Zwi

We were in Gaza shooting a documentary and we had heard about the orphanages and wanted to visit and document some of the children who had lost parents during the wars in Gaza.

Announcing.... In their own words

Inspiring Australians tell their own stories in a unique new gallery audio tour, developed in collaboration with the National Library of Australia.

Selected images

Take a peek at a selection of the portraits you can see in the exhibition.

The National Portrait Prizes

The National Portrait Gallery today announced finalists for the inaugural Darling Portrait Prize, a national new $75,000 prize for Australian portrait painting, and released selected images from the final prize pool for the popular National Photography Portrait Prize.

Uncommon Australians

Sarah Engledow writes about Gordon and Marilyn Darling and their support for the National Portrait Gallery throughout its evolution.

Fiona McMonagle

Fiona aims to create a dangerous situation with a flood of water on the paper, forcing each work to the point where it can fail, and then rescuing it. 

The art of Inner Worlds

Dr Christopher Chapman NPG Curator of Inner Worlds explains the development of an exhibition that spans from Surrealism to contemporary art.

NPPP 2016 exhibition essay

Penny Grist, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2016 Prize.

Announcing... Jonathan Jones Bogong Cluster: Physically distant, socially connected

A new light installation by Jonathan Jones reflects on the importance of community through the lens of his Wiradjuri and Kamilaroi heritage, whilst also acting as a prompt for gallery visitors to maintain social distancing.

Coming into being

Dr Christopher Chapman, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2018 Prize.

Herra Pahlasari

At the time of Herra Pahlasari’s birth in 1978, her academic parents were living in Canberra.

Arianne McNaught

An interview with the photographer.

Exhibition opening speech

Leo Schofield introduces the exhibition, Masters of fare: chefs, winemakers, providores.

S Teddy D

S Teddy D was born in Padang, Sumatra in 1970, and studied painting at the Institut Seni Indonesia (Indonesian Institute of Art) in Yogyakarta.

Noel McKenna

It’s a matter beyond dispute that in the entire history of Australian art, it’s Noel McKenna who’s painted the liveliest rendition of the head of a Chihuahua.

Seduce, Amuse, Entertain

Michael Desmond, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2007 Prize.

Nikhil Chopra

Nikhil Chopra was born in 1974, in Calcutta. His first degree was in commerce, but in 1997 he took up fine art studies, eventually gaining a Masters in Fine Art from Ohio State University, United States.

Everybody, look serious

Dr Sarah Engledow, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2014 Prize.

Ken Done

With a mum who was married to a tradie, you’d think it a fair chance that the baby Jesus would have grown up with a dog in the house.

The Board

The Board oversees the Gallery's strategic directions, objectives and governance.

The more things change...

Dr Sarah Engledow, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2017 Prize.

Inner Worlds and psychoanalysis

Inner Worlds evokes a broad view of psychology as a discipline. However, the specific interests of the practitioners whose portraits are included in the exhibition incorporate specialist areas including psychoanalysis.

Less than six degrees of separation

Dr Anne Sanders NPG Curatorial Researcher investigated the lives of the pioneering psychologists whose portraits are featured in Inner Worlds.

Kristin Headlam

Basil grew into a speckled beauty – a long-legged leaper and an exceptionally vocal dog, with a great register of sounds, ascending in shock value from a whimper to a growl to a bark to a yelp that’s a violation of the ears.

Anna Culliton

Anna Culliton never had a colouring-in book when she was little. Her parents –Tony, a filmmaker, and Stephanie, a painter – wouldn’t let her have one. Instead, they insisted on her drawing her own pictures to colour-in. 

History

How the National Portrait Gallery and its unique collection came to be

Rick Amor: 21 Portraits

Sarah Engledow chronicles Rick Amor's work and accomplishments in this extensive essay in conjunction with the exhibition Rick Amor: 21 Portraits.

Nicholas Harding

Over the years the young Nicholas Harding got his hands on various mice and guinea pigs, but they served mainly to illustrate the concept of mortality. 

Portrait Donors

Some prime ministers

Sarah Engledow explores the history of the prime ministers and artists featured in the exhibition.

Nicholas Harding: 28 Portraits

Sarah Engledow looks at three decades of Nicholas Harding's portraiture.

A non-material and non-physical portrait

Inner Worlds features the recently commissioned portrait of world-renowned philosopher of consciousness David Chalmers by Melbourne-based artist Nick Mourtzakis.

Faces of war

Lesley Harding, Curator, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne explores Albert Tucker’s experience of World War II, his interests in the intersection between psychology and creativity, and their influence on his portrait making.