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Time and light

This sample of 56 photographs takes in some of the smallest photographs we own and some of the largest, some of the earliest and some of the most recent, as well as multiple photographic processes from daguerreotypes to digital media.

The Iconoclasts

Australian portraiture of the mid-twentieth century was rich with the influence of European modernism, exemplified by the work of artists including Arthur Boyd, Judy Cassab and Clifton Pugh.

Jack Charles

Recorded 2022

The last word

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

Everything, everyqueer, all at once

Bradley Vincent considers Samuel Hodge’s use of the archive to create a queer vernacular of portraiture.

Past directors

Directors of the National Portrait Gallery from 1998 to today.

Wicked but Virtuous

Faith Stellmaker shares pioneering artist and restaurateur Mirka Mora’s lasting legacy on Melbourne’s art, dining and culture.

The Iconoclasts

Australian portraiture of the mid-twentieth century was rich with the influence of European modernism, exemplified by the work of artists including Arthur Boyd, Judy Cassab and Clifton Pugh.

Love my way

Inga Walton delves into the bohemian group of artists and writers who used each other as muses and transformed British culture.

Take thy face hence

Joanna Gilmour travels through time to explore the National Portrait Gallery London’s masterpieces in Shakespeare to Winehouse.

Drawn from life

Penelope Grist discovers the rich narratives in Peter Wegner’s series of centenarian portraits.

Self portrait, 1964

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

Self portrait, 1948

Gift of Julie Friedeberger 2021

Self portrait, 1900

Gift of Rosemary Neilson 2021

Us Mob, Rock Against Racism Concert, Paddington Town Hall, 1980 (printed 2021)

Purchased 2021

Us Mob, Paddington Town Hall, 1980 (printed 2021)

Purchased 2021

The Capel Family

Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Rupert C.W. Bunny, 1928

Gift of Ben Travers 2021. Donated through Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Calwell part two

Recorded 1967

Arthur Calwell part one

Recorded 1967

Arthur Boyd

Recorded 1965

The Streetons’ rich serenade

If music be the food of love

The most material advantages

A one-in-a-thousand woman

Giving a dam

Ensconced and meditative in crisp Tasmania, Joanna Gilmour pays tribute to passionate green advocate and photographer Olegas Truchanas.

Activating the space

Sandra Phillips on portraits of Indigenous activism from Cairns Art Gallery’s 2019 Queen’s Land Blak Portraiture exhibition.

H.R.H. The Prince Arthur, 1860

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2020

Prince Arthur, 1860

Purchased 2020

Little women

Joanna Gilmour looks beyond the ivory face of select portrait miniatures to reveal their sitters’ true grit.

Petal to the mettle

Sarah Engledow lauds the very civil service of Dame Helen Blaxland.

Agnes enigma

Karen Quinlan considers the case of Agnes Goodsir, whose low profile in Australia belies her overseas acclaim.

Queen of cartes

Joanna Gilmour discusses the role of the carte de visite in portraiture’s democratisation, and its harnessing by Victoria, the world’s first media monarch.

Rethinking foundational histories

A focus on Indigenous-European relationships underpins Facing New Worlds. By Kate Fullagar.

James Macarthur, c. 1836-1838

Purchased 2019

Portrait of Brenda Niall, 1997

Gift of Dr Brenda Niall AO 2019. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Edward Lloyd Jones, c. 1920s

Gift of Charles E. Lloyd Jones and Kim Lloyd Jones 2019. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Beetson, 1968 (printed 2019)

Purchased 2019

The Writer: Peter Goldsworthy, 2018

Commissioned with funds provided by Jillian Broadbent AO and Dr Helen Nugent AO 2018.

The personal and the historical

Where do we draw a line between the personal and the historical? Although she died in Melbourne in 1975, when I was not quite eleven years old, I have the vividest memories of my maternal grandmother Helen Borthwick.

Kiwi magpie

Penelope Grist finds inspiration in pioneering New Zealand artist, Frances Hodgkins.

Presence and absence

The art of Australia’s colonial women painters affords us an invaluable, alternative perspective on the nascent nation-building project.

Woburn Sheepshearing, 1811

Purchased 2018

Clara Crosbie, c. 1885

Gift of John McPhee 2018

Their brilliant careers

Jenny Gall delves into Starstruck to celebrate some of Australian cinema’s iconic women.

Maria Caroline Brownrigg

At first glance, this small watercolour group portrait of her two sons and four daughters by Maria Caroline Brownrigg (d. 1880) may seem prosaic, even hesitant

Progressive pictures

Athol Shmith’s photographs contributed to the emergence of a new vision of Australian womanhood.

Northern exposure

Phil Manning celebrates a century of Brisbane photographic portraiture.

The art of conciliation

Gareth Knapman explores the politics and opportunism behind the portraits of Tasmania’s Black War.

Costantini's convictions

Jo Gilmour uncovers endearing authenticity in the art of a twice-transported Tasmanian.

Audacity, audacity, audacity

Angus delves into the biographies of two ambitious characters; Sir Stamford Raffles and Sir John Pope-Hennessy.

Henry Fullwood (Uncle Remus), 1919

Gift of Denis Savill 2017. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Calwell, n.d.

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Lily Kahan 2017
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Sir Asher Joel, n.d.

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Lily Kahan 2017
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Madame Sibly, Phrenologist and Mesmerist, c. 1870

Purchased 2017

It's a Mora!

Select extracts from Mirka Mora's autobiography, Wicked but Virtuous, provide rich accompaniment to recent Gallery acquisitions.  

The family scene

Traudi Allen discovers sensitivity, humour and fine draughtsmanship in the portraiture of John Perceval.

The mystery of Enoch Arden

Tennyson's Enoch Arden was inspired by a story that Thomas Woolner passed on to him – but whose story and of whom?

Apollo's breath

Christopher Chapman delights in the intimacy of Robert Mapplethorpe's photography

Boyd to man

Christopher Chapman looks at influences and insight in the formative years of Arthur Boyd.

All the way with K of K

Sarah Engledow bristles at the biographers’ neglect of Kitchener’s antipodean intervention.

Portrait 53

Experience the art of rock music; attend to the neglected aspects of Lord Kitchener's work; and say farewell to the inimitable Bob Ellis.

Bonfire of the vanities

Australian Galleries Director Stuart Purves tells the story of two portraits by John Brack.

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.

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.

Listen: Mysterious eyes

An open house, recollections of my early life: extracts from the reminiscences of David Boyd.

Mysterious eyes

Boyd’s self-portrait at age 25 is joined by his equally emotive portraits of those around him.

Diamond Doll

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

Bill and Ted's excellent portrait.

Sarah Engledow on Messrs Dobell and MacMahon and the art of friendship.

Duke of Wellington, 1841

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2016

George and Jemima Billet with family, c. 1852

Purchased 2016

Dr Joan M Redshaw AM, 1982

Purchased 2016

Money for Myth

Australian character on the market by Jane Raffan.

Lauded legacy

Karl James gives short shrift to doubts about the profile of General Sir John Monash.

Sideshow Alley

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.

Missing Persons

Desperately seeking Woolner medallions

Andrew Sayers AM FAHA

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

Enigma

Grace Carroll contemplates the curious case of Christian Waller.

Arthur as Alyosha?

Patrick McCaughey explores a striking Boyd self portrait.

Regarding Henrys

Sarah Engledow ponders the divergent legacies of Messrs Kendall and Lawson.

Portrait 49

This issue features Jude Rae, Arthur Boyd, Darren McDonald, John Singer Sargent, Tom Wills the 'inventor' of Australian Rules Football and more.

A real Pratt

The death of a gentlewoman is shrouded in mystery, a well-liked governor finds love after sorrow, and two upright men become entangled in the historical record.

The silent partner

One half of the team that was Eltham Films left scarcely a trace in the written historical record, but survives in a vivid portrait.

Goods and chattels

I have been reading systematically through the ads in the earliest issues of the Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, such a rich vein of information about certain aspects of daily life in Regency Sydney.

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.

In good company

Jean Appleton’s 1965 self portrait makes a fine addition to the National Portrait Gallery’s collection writes Joanna Gilmour.

Uncommon Australians

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.

The medallion

In recent years I have become fascinated by the so-called Sydney Cove Medallion (1789), a work of art that bridges the 10,000-mile gap between the newly established penal settlement at Port Jackson and the beating heart of Enlightenment England.

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

Gift of the Jozef Vissel 2015

Archbishop Michael Kelly, c. 1924 (cast 2010)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Mawalan Marika, c. 1963

Purchased 2015

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

Purchased 2015

Arthur and Ria Murch, 1945

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Arthur Murch, 1945

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

The sculptor (George Lambert and Arthur Murch), c. 1929

Purchased 2015

Grazia Gunn, 2014

Purchased with funds provided by Wayne Williams 2015

Jan Nelson

Jan Nelson was born in Melbourne. She graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1983 and has been exhibited her work in both solo and group exhibitions throughout Australia since that time including at the MCA, Sydney, National Gallery of Victoria, Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane and the Experimental Art Foundation, Adelaide.

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.

Prime Ministers

On the day before the Hon. E. G. Whitlam, AC, QC, died last month, at the great age of 98, there were seven former prime ministers of Australia still living, plus the incumbent Mr. Abbott – eight in all.

Remembering Ursula

I first knew Dr. Hoff when in 1986, long after retiring from the National Gallery of Victoria, she taught a graduate seminar on Rembrandt.

The Archduke

The immediate chain of events that led to the outbreak of the First World War began 100 years ago on June 28.

Autumn in Canberra

In Persuasion (1818), a long walk on a fine autumn day affords Anne Elliot an opportunity to ruminate wistfully and at great length upon declining happiness, youth and hope.

Self portrait, 1945-1946

Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2014

Arthur Phillip Esq., Captain General and Commander in Chief in & over the territory of New South Wales, 1789

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

Dr. Arthur Martin a'Beckett, 1845

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

Dr. Arthur Martin a'Beckett, c. 1840

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

The Right Honourable Charles Lord Hawkesbury, Chancellor of the Duchy and County Palatine of Lancaster, 1788

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

Portrait of Bennilong, a Native of New Holland, c. 1810

Purchased 2014

Carl Cooper, 1945-1946

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Bequest of Alan Boxer 2014

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

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

The shipwright's arms

Joanna Gilmour explores the life and times of convict-turned-artist William Buelow Gould.

What price self?

Jane Raffan investigates auction sales of self portraits nationally and internationally.

Arianne McNaught

An interview with the photographer.

Robert Henderson Croll, 1927

Gift of Grietje Croll in memory of her late husband Robert Devereaux Croll and with the endorsement of his daughter Helen Croll 2013. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Mr John Eason, 1838

Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2013

Andrew Sayers, 2012

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2013

Self portrait, 1965

Gift of the Estate of Nicolaas van der Waarden 2013

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.

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.

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.

George Lambert

An examination of the life and times of George Lambert through the gesture and pose in his self portrait. 

Beguiling impressions

Sarah Engledow is seduced by the portraits and the connections between the artists and their subjects in the exhibition Impressions: Painting light and life.

George Rose, 1811

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Captain John Hunter, Governor New South Wales, 1801

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ted and Gina Gregg 2012

New South Wales State Repatriation Board, c. 1920

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the family of FW Macpherson 2012

Lord Viscount Sydney, c. 1790

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Donald Friend at Owl Creek, 1983

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Lawrence Daws 2012
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Impressions

Impressions: Painting light and life presents portraits by, and of, artists at the heart of Australian impressionism including Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton and Frederick McCubbin.

The numbers man

Dr. Sarah Engledow tells the story of Australia's first Federal statistician, Sir George Knibbs.

Painting mates

Michael Desmond discusses Fred Williams' portraits of friends, artist Clifton Pugh, David Aspden and writer Stephen Murray-Smith, and the stylistic connections between his portraits and landscapes.

First encounters

Representations of the inhabitants of the new world expose the complexities of the colonisers' intentions.

In a good paddock

Celebrating a new painted portrait of Joseph Banks, Sarah Engledow spins a yarn of the naturalist, the first kangaroo in France and Don, a Spanish ram.

John Shirlow, c. 1937

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

'Timbere sauvage de la nouvelle galles du sud en grand costume (Relache au Port Jackson)', 1822

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Portrait of Sir Joseph Banks, c. 1814

Purchased 2011

Small worlds

Bess Norriss Tait created miniature watercolour portraits full of character and life.

No shirt, no service

Bon Scott and Angus Young photographed by Rennie Ellis are part of a display celebrating summer and images of the shirtless male.

National Youth Self Portrait Prize

An annual event, the National Youth Self Portrait Prize seeks to encourage young people to embrace self portraiture and its expressive possibilities.

Husbands and Wives

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

Australian of the Year

The Australian of the Year Awards have often provoked controversy about who is selected and whether their achievements are remarkable.

Thomas Pearce, c. 1878

Purchased 2010

Trucaninny [Trukanini], wife of Woureddy [Wurati], 1836

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Lieutenant King, 1789

Purchased 2010

Arthur Phillip Esq., Captain General and Commander in Chief in & over the territory of New South Wales, 1789

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Gustavus Brooke, c. 1865

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Chinese giant Chonkwicsee and companion, 1876

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Top shot that

Gideon Haigh discusses portraits of Australian cricketers from the early 20th century

Fits of delicacy and despair

Henry Mundy's portraits flesh out notions of propriety and good taste in a convict colony.

To the end of the earth

The portrait of Dr. Johann Reinhold Forster and his son George Forster from 1780, is one of the oldest in the NPG's collection.

Duty bound

Joanna Gilmour explores the life of colonial women Lady Ellen Stirling, Eliza Darling, Lady Eliza Arthur, Elizabeth Macquarie and Lady Jane Franklin.

Through blue eyes

Works by Arthur Boyd and Sidney Nolan bring the desert, the misty seashore and the hot Monaro plains to exhibition Open Air: Portraits in the landscape.

Sure thing

Blue Mountain, Owner, Trainer, Jockey, James Scobie 1887 by Frederick Woodhouse Snr. is a portrait of James Scobie, well known jockey and eminent horse trainer.

Who's that?

Michael Desmond discusses the iconic picture of two Rugby League players which became known as 'The Gladiators'.

Black and white history

English artist Benjamin Duterrau took up the cause of the Indigenous peoples of Tasmania with his detailed and sympathetic renderings.

International issue

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

The fat of the land

Sir Sidney Kidman (1857-1935) is inscribed in Australian legend as the ‘Cattle King’. 

An Australian story

In his speech launching the new National Portrait Gallery building on 3 December 2008, then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd set the Gallery in a national and historical context.

The house, the horse, the wife and the offspring

Joanna Gilmour writes about the portraiture of the colonial artist William Nicholas.

Girl (portrait of Barbara Blackman), 1969

Purchased 2009

Sir Charles Mackerras, 1983

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Sir Charles Mackerras 2009

Peace and War (Mr A. G. Hales), 1908

Gift of Ronald A Walker 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait of Dr Johann Reinhold Forster and his son George Forster, c. 1780

Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family, the Ian Potter Foundation and John Schaeffer AO 2009

The Gladiators (Norm Provan and Arthur Summons), 1963 (printed 1970s)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

Buckley discovering himself to the early settlers, 1869

Purchased 2009

The Lawn at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day, c. 1889

Purchased 2009

The Colonel (Portrait of Walter Withers), 1896

Purchased 2009

Barbara Blackman, 2008

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Barbara Blackman 2009

Open Air

Open Air is an exhibition of portraits of Australians in environments of particular significance to them.

An actress and her fans

Dr. Sarah Engledow discovers the amazing life of Ms. Hilda Spong, little remembered star of the stage, who was captured in a portrait by Tom Roberts.

Lovers of light

Dr Sarah Engledow traces the significant links between Antonio Dattilo-Rubbo and Evelyn Chapman through their portraits.

The bright-eyed Mariner

Public hanging

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

Bob Croll of the AAA Vic., 1916

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Society of Artists Selection Committee, 1907

Purchased 2008

Arthur Boyd in his studio at Bundanon, 1993

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

The Merioola Group, 1940s

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2008. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait of Bennilong, Native of New Holland, c. 1798

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Ross A Field 2008

Portrait of Captain John Hunter, 1792

Purchased with funds provided by Ross A Field 2008

Practising the Minuet (Miss Hilda Spong), 1893

Purchased with funds provided by the Ian Potter Foundation 2008

Painters' paradise

Andrew Sayers feels the warmth in the paintings Matthew Perceval made while the sun shone in southern France.

Portrait Paintings by Matthew Perceval

From 1967 until 1981 Matthew Perceval lived and painted in France and during those years produced a large body of portrait paintings.

Somewhere to hang your cap

A pair of portraits by John Brack; Portrait of Kym Bonython and Portrait of Mr Bonython's speedway cap combine to create a quirky depiction of their subject.

Melbourne experience

Diana Warnes explores the lives of Hal and Katherine 'Kate' Hattam through their portraits painted by Fred Williams and Clifton Pugh.

Artists' space

Studio: Australian Painters Photographed by R. Ian Lloyd presents 61 of some of Australia’s most respected and significant painters working in the studio environment.

Facing East

An exhibition at the Freer and Sackler Galleries in Washington DC showcases the art of portraiture in Asia over two thousand years.

Sidney Kidman and Arthur Triggs, c. 1914

Purchased with funds provided by The Ian Potter Foundation 2007

Captain W Kinghorne, 1834

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by The Ian Potter Foundation 2007

Sam Haskins

Haskins is known for his poetic combinations of images and this exhibition of 'extended' portraits builds on this approach.

Pre-Raphaelite Profile

In 2006 the National Portrait Gallery acquired a splendid portrait of Victoria's first governor, Lieutenant Governor Charles Joseph La Trobe by Thomas Woolner.

Portraits and other stories

As the National Portrait Gallery opens its exhibition of portrait and figurative work by veteran photographer Sam Haskins, the artist reflects on the highlights of his fifty-year career so far.

Start Your Engines...

The bronze sculpture by Julie Edgar reflects through both the material and representation the determined and straight-forward nature of Brabham. 

Tim Burstall, Andamooka (filming of the Last of the Knucklemen), c. 1979

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2006

A Portrait (Kate Hattam), 1956

Purchased 2006

Hal Hattam, 1960

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Hattam family in memory of Hal and Kate Hattam 2006
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Arthur Boyd, c. 1982

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Dr Joseph Brown AO OBE 2006
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Clifton Pugh

This exhibition offers a comprehensive display of Clifton Pugh's portraits revealing his development and growth from tonal paintings to a unique style that was in demand from politicians, artists, academics and Australian personalities.

Written in Water

Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis, photographers and conservationists, shared a love of photography and exploring wilderness areas of Tasmania.

Friends and Acquaintances

Dr. Sarah Engledow discusses a collection of drawings and prints by the Victorian artist Rick Amor acquired in 2005.

Poets' Portraits

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.

Peter Dombrovskis, 1996

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Olegas Truchanas, 1971

Purchased 2005

John Perceval, 1985

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

John Perceval, 1985

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

John Perceval, 1985

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

Mark Strizic

This exhibition traces the creative output of nearly 50 years by one of Australia's landmark living photographers.

To Look Within

This exhibition is the first comprehensive survey of self-portraits in Australia, from the colonial period to the present

Arthur Boyd - Bundanon Studio III, 1993

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Boyd - Bundanon Studio II, 1993

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Boyd with horse hair brush - Bundanon 1993, 1993

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur and Yvonne, 1993

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Arthur Boyd, 1993

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Ursula Hoff, 1994

Purchased 2004

Martin Sharp, 1986

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2004
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Donald Friend, 1987

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Facing Facts

Former NPG Director, Andrew Sayers describes the 1922 Self-portrait with Gladioli by George Lambert.

Four from the 30s

Australia's tradition of sculpted portraits stretches back to the early decades of the nineteenth century and continues to sustain a group of dedicated sculptors.

Presence and Absence

This exhibition focuses on exploring national and communal identity through sculptural production in Australia, from the early decades of settlement through to the present day

Portrait of a Modernist

The National Portrait Gallery acquired the self-portrait by Grace Cossington Smith in 2003.

John Perceval, 1999

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Thomas de Kessler 2001

Jack Lang, life mask, n.d.

Purchased 2000

Arthur Boyd, 1962

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Peter Allen, 1980

Purchased 2003

Rudy Komon, c. 1970

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2003
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

No Laughing Matter

The biographical exhibition of Barry Humphries was the first display of its kind at the National Portrait Gallery.

Great stylists: Caruso, Melba, Pavarotti, Bonynge and Sutherland, 1983

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Eric Harding and Athol Hawke 2002

Sir Arthur Coles, c. 1971

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Coles Myer Ltd 2002
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Howard Taylor, 1988 (printed 2001)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Bernard Smith, n.d.

Gift of an anonymous donor 2002

Howard Taylor, 1988 (printed 2001)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Arthur Streeton, c. 1890

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Arthur Streeton, Nora Streeton (nee Clench) and Pat, the dog, c. 1909

Purchased 2001

Charles Conder, Stella Maris Condor and Florence Humphrey at les Petites Dalles, Normandy, 1902

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Arthur Boyd, Bundanon, New South Wales, 1995 (printed 2000)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
The series 'David Moore: From Face to Face' was acquired as a gift of the artist and with financial assistance from Timothy Fairfax AC and L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2001

The Tichborne Claimant (Arthur Orton), c. 1872

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Tom Roberts, 1920

Gift of Gerard Vaughan 2001

Heads of the People

For Tom Roberts - Australia's best nineteenth-century portrait painter - neither a proto-national portrait gallery nor more popular collections of portrait heads, were sufficient public celebrations for the notables of Australian history

Anthony Dattilo Rubbo, 1935

Purchased 2000

Arthur Boyd Portraits

This is the first in a series of National Portrait Gallery exhibitions to survey the portraits painted by artists who are not thought of, primarily, as portrait painters

John Perceval painting 'Veronica and the Conspirators', 1967

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

In the mirror: self portrait with Joy Hester, 1939

Gift of the artist 1999. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Betty Burstall, 1945

Purchased 1998

Bonnie, 2012