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The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders both past and present.

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Search / derek denton

Emeritus Professor Derek Denton AC

Biography

Emeritus Professor Derek Denton AC (1924-2022), physiologist, was born in Launceston and graduated in medicine from the University of Melbourne in 1947.

3 portraits in the collection

Professor Derek Denton, 2009

Janet Dawson

Portrait, pastel on paper

Gift of Professor Derek Denton AC and Dame Margaret Scott AC 2014. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Equation of a life - a portrait of Professor Derek Denton

Equation of a life – a portrait of Derek Denton

9 September 2016

Archived media releases 2016

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

Equation of a life - a portrait of Professor Derek Denton, 2016

Evert Ploeg

Portrait, oil on linen

Commissioned with the assistance of funds provided by Janet Whiting AM, Philip Lukies and Antonia Syme 2016

Study for commissioned portrait, "Equation of life - a portrait of Professor Derek Denton", 2016

Evert Ploeg

Portrait, print on transparency film

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Commissioned with the assistance of funds provided by Janet Whiting AM, Philip Lukies and Antonia Syme 2016

Portrait of Denton Corker Marshall, 2009

John Gollings

Portrait, type C photograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Professor Derek Freeman

Biography

Derek Freeman (1916–2001) was an anthropologist. Born in New Zealand, he gained his doctorate from Cambridge before moving to Canberra in 1955 to work at the Australian National University.

1 portrait in the collection

Denton Corker Marshall

Biography

Denton Corker Marshall, based in Melbourne with offices in London and Jakarta, is one of the world's leading design practices.

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of Professor Derek Freeman, 1996

Ralph Heimans AM

Portrait, pencil and pastel on paper

Purchased with funds provided by the Basil Bressler Bequest 2001

Thinking about architecture and portraiture

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

Dr Christopher Chapman describes the experimental exhibition Portraits + Architecture

Denton Corker Marshall

General content

Denton Corker Marshall is based in Melbourne with offices in London and Jakarta.

Derek

The Huxleys

Image

Dame Margaret Scott, 1949

Kenneth Rowell AM

Portrait, pen and ink, brush and ink and watercolour on paper

Gift of Professor Derek Denton AC and Dame Margaret Scott AC 2014. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Dame Margaret Scott AC DBE

Biography

Dame Margaret Scott AC DBE (1922-2019) ballerina and teacher, was scarred by her education in a Johannesburg convent boarding school and left her home on a Swaziland farm in 1939.

1 portrait in the collection

Before hand

The private life of a portrait

Previous exhibition, 2020

Revealing the backstories behind the NPG collection, Before hand features interviews with artists and sitters as well as working drawings, scrapbooks, sketches and footage taken in artists’ studios and out on location.

Study "Radical Restraint: A Portrait of Michael Kirby", 1998

Ralph Heimans AM

Portrait, pencil and crayon on paper

Gift of the artist 2001

Supporters

$5,000 - $9,999

Honour board

Leaving Lost, 2013

by Frazer Bull-Clark

General content

Finalist, MDPA 2013

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis, 2017

Jacqueline Mitelman

Portrait, type C photograph on paper

Commissioned with funds provided by Jim and Barbara Higgins, Sir Roderick Carnegie AC, Rupert Myer AO and Annabel Myer, Louise and Martyn Myer Foundation, Peter and Ruth McMullin, Diana Carlton, Professor Derek Denton AC, Harold Mitchell AC, Peter Jopling AM KC, Andrew and Liz Mackenzie, Patricia Patten, Tamie Fraser AO, Bruce Parncutt and Robin Campbell, Lauraine Diggins, Steven Skala AO and Lousje Skala 2017

Richard Johnson 23 May 2009 3:07PM

Ingvar Kenne

Image

Professor John Mulvaney AO CMG

Biography

Emeritus Professor Derek John Mulvaney AO CMG (1925–2016), one of Australia’s foremost prehistorians, has often been described as the father of Australian archaeology.

1 portrait in the collection

Professor John Mulvaney, 1984

Janenne Eaton

Portrait, oil on canvas

Gift of John and Jean Mulvaney 2000

John Gollings

Biography

John Gollings made his first photographs and received darkroom tuition at age eleven; he later studied Arts/Architecture at Melbourne University, supporting himself through architectural and wedding photography.

3 portraits in the collection

In the mirror: self portrait with Joy Hester

Spring exhibition program

18 August 2020

Archived media releases 2020

The following on-line and physical exhibitions are planned to open at the National Portrait Gallery in coming months. For those who can’t travel at present, selected works from all exhibitions will be included online

Paper weight

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

Joanna Gilmour delves into a collection display that celebrates the immediacy and potency of drawing as an art form in its own right.

Tracks in the sand

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2008

Dr Sarah Engledow discusses Quentin Jones's photograph of Australian author Tim Winton.

Australian Princess

Magazine article by Katherine Russell, 2005

The full-length portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark by artist Jiawei Shen, has become a destination piece for visitors.

"Just what is it that makes today's homes so different, so appealing?", 1956

Pop goes the preconception

Magazine article by Paul Moorhouse, 2007

A National Portrait Gallery, London exhibition redefines portraiture, shifting the focus towards a new perspective on Pop Art.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Honour board

Uncommon Australians

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

General content

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

Untitled #21/09 (after Ricci, 1700; featuring Matthew Mitcham)

Getting bare

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2015

How seven portraits within Bare reveal in a public portrait parts of the body and elements of life usually located in the private sphere.

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