Search / laurence short

Laurence Short AO OBE (1915–2009), trade union leader, joined the Federated Ironworkers' Association in 1937 and the Labor Party five years later.

1 portrait in the collection

Nancy Borlase and Laurie Short, 1991

Jenny Sages

Gift of the Margaret Olley Art Trust 1998

Sage, 2015

by Jacinta Short

Sir Laurence McIntyre CBE

Sir Laurence McIntyre CBE (1912-1981) diplomat and public servant, was Australian ambassador to the UN during the 1970s.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Laurence Hartnett

Sir Lawrence Hartnett (1898-1986), automotive engineer, was born in Woking, Surrey.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Laurence Hartnett, 1984

Reshid Bey

Portrait, graphite on paper

Gift of Sir Laurence Hartnett's daughters 2003

Sir Laurence McIntyre, n.d.

Louis Kahan AO

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Lily Kahan 2006
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

David Potts

David Potts (1926-2012) was a documentary photographer with a career spanning more than fifty years.

3 portraits in the collection

Rhys Graham

Filmmaker and writer Rhys Graham has worked across a number of moving image forms.

1 portrait in the collection

Bruce Petty

Bruce Petty (1929-2023), political cartoonist, grew up in Melbourne and as a young man took night classes in art at RMIT.

1 portrait in the collection

Warwick Thornton

Warwick Thornton (b. 1970) is a Kaytetye man, writer, director and cinematographer.

2 portraits in the collection

Self portrait, Cyprus, 1953

David Potts

Portrait treats and treatises

Purchased 2001

Brooke Lockett, Heidi Martin, Karen Nanasca, Halaina Hills; New York, 2012 Lisa Tomasetti

About Face

Publications

From punchy short pieces to longer form leanings, it's the place to come for a frequent fix of the world's most accessible art form.

About Face

#PortraitureComesHome

From punchy short pieces to longer form leanings, it's the place to come for a frequent fix of the world's most accessible art form.

Marion Halligan

Marion Halligan AM (1940–2024) is a novelist, short story writer, reviewer and essayist.

1 portrait in the collection

Lawrence Cox AO

Laurence Cox AO (b. 1938), a director of the Australian Stock Exchange from its inception in 1987 and its chairman from 1989 to 1994, was an executive director of Macquarie Group Limited from 1996 to 2009; chairman of the Transurban Group from 1996 to 2007 and chairman of the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute from 1994 to 2009.

1 portrait in the collection

Ivan Gaal

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on vellum

Ivan Gaal came to Australia as a refugee from his native Hungary in 1957.

1 portrait in the collection

'words are the daughters of the earth' Marion Halligan, 2002

Leeanne Crisp

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2004

Yhonnie and Indiana, 2012

by Janelle Low

Jessie Street

Jessie Street (née Lillingston, 1889-1970), feminist and activist, had a 50-year career encompassing achievements on landmark issues such as family planning, equal pay and equal employment.

1 portrait in the collection

David Potts reflected in a magazine page

David Potts reflected in a magazine page, c. 1949 (printed 2000)

David Moore

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
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.

masculine/feminine, 2010 by Bridget Mac
NYSPP 2010 winner

Eyes on the Prize

A short visual essay of some of the works in the National Youth Self Portrait Prize 2010.

Nam Le, 2010

Rozalind Drummond

Purchased 2010

Nam Le

Nam Le (b. 1978), writer, came to Australia as a baby with his Vietnamese refugee parents.

1 portrait in the collection

The Destruction of the Kelly gang (from The Australasian Sketcher, 17 July 1880)

Steve Hart

Steve Hart (1859–1880), a member of the 'Kelly gang', lived his whole short life in the country around Wangaratta.

1 portrait in the collection

Will Dyson

Faces of the Twentieth Century

Will (William Henry) Dyson, cartoonist, caricaturist, writer and draughtsman, was born in Alfredtown, near Ballarat, and studied for a short time in Melbourne, where he worked closely with his older brother Ambrose.

11 portraits in the collection

Karsh

Previous exhibition, 1998

Yousuf Karsh - the most famous portrait photographer in the world - has photographed the statesmen, artists, literary and scientific figures who have defined the 20th century and shaped our lives, In this, his 90th year, the National Portrait Gallery is thrilled to present an exhibition of Karsh's photography of 20th century figures.

Peter Goldsworthy AM (b. 1951), medical doctor and writer, was born in Minlaton, South Australia, and grew up in various country towns as his father, a school teacher, moved for work.

2 portraits in the collection

Little family, 2019

Gene Hart-Smith

Max Cullen

Max Cullen (b. 1940), actor and artist, trained in art in Sydney in the 1950s, worked as a commercial artist and illustrator for some years, and has continued to exhibit solo and in group shows including the Archibald, Blake and Sulman Prizes.

1 portrait in the collection

Riverboat Rod & Ruby

James Bugg

Vulnerability

More about In the flesh

London-based artist Ron Mueck creates an intense awareness of the different ways in which we experience vulnerability and a strong sense of tenderness is never far away.

Brian Dunlop

Brian Dunlop studied at East Sydney Technical College and won the Le Gay Brereton Prize for Drawing while still a student.

7 portraits in the collection

Coveruncover, 2014

by Phoebe Carmody

Finalist, MDPA 2014

Waylon Batt, 2016

by Nic Vevers

Finalist, DPA 2016

Tracey Moffatt

Tracey Moffatt AO (b. 1960) is an artist whose work reflects on issues including race, childhood trauma, gender and popular culture.

8 portraits in the collection

Neil Gaiman, The Sandman, 2013

by Tamara Dean

Murray Bail

Murray Bail (b. 1941), writer, was born in Adelaide and spent several years in India and England in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

3 portraits in the collection

A blackguard rehearsing - Max Cullen, 2001

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Nigel Naseby 2007
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Sydney Ure Smith

Sydney Ure Smith, publisher, was responsible for the establishment of Art in Australia in 1916-1942 and the journals The Home and Australian National Journal.

1 portrait in the collection

Alfred Arthur Greenwood Hales

Alfred Arthur Greenwood Hales (1860-1936), adventurer, writer and newspaper correspondent, left school and started writing short stories in his teens.

1 portrait in the collection

Eleanor Constance Gude

Eleanor Constance 'Nornie' Gude (1915–2002) was born in Ballarat and was fifteen when she was accepted to study painting at the Ballarat Technical Art School.

1 portrait in the collection

Double Portrait: Vida and Marie Breckenridge (study)

Double Portrait: Vida and Marie Breckenridge (study), 1999

Nancy Borlase AM

Gift of Marie Breckenridge 2004

Erica, 2018

Ben Bickley

Upcoming

Exhibitions

A short listing of future exhibitions planned for the National Portrait Gallery.

Johann Reinhold Forster

Johann Reinhold Forster (1729-1798), German/Scottish naturalist and writer, began his career as a pastor near Danzig.

1 portrait in the collection

Wayne Blair

Wayne Blair (b. 1971), director, actor and writer, became interested in acting and dance while a high school student in Rockhampton in the 1980s.

1 portrait in the collection

Breast cancer, age 37

Cat Leedon

Now we must climb higher, 2014

by Mark Hopper

Jessie Street, 1929

Reginald Jerrold-Nathan

Gift of the Street family and the Jessie Street National Women's Library 2010

The Hunter

Clean shaven

Towards the end of the eighteenth century, ideas about equality and liberty had begun to filter through to fashion.

Nancy Borlase AM

Previous exhibition, 2011

Nancy Borlase AM (1914–2006), painter and writer, was born in New Zealand, and had to be dug out of the wreckage when an earthquake struck Napier in late 1931.

4 portraits in the collection

Tea time, c.1898–1902 by Rupert Bunny (1864–1947)

Impressions

Painting light and life

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.

Gideon Obarzanek

Gideon Obarzanek (b. 1966), choreographer, director and curator, spent his early life in Israel, attended school in Melbourne and won a place at the Australian Ballet School, choreographing his first piece there in 1987.

1 portrait in the collection

Celine Celeste

Céline Céleste (c. 1811-1882), actor and director, trained for the stage in her native Paris and was performing in American cities by her late teens.

1 portrait in the collection

Batchelder & O'Neill

The American brothers Perez Mann, Benjamin and Nathaniel Batchelder worked in Victoria and New South Wales in the 1850s and 1860s.

9 portraits in the collection

The Cohen

Beards

Somewhat like the Lambert but more avuncular, more businesslike, less dandified or effete – the sort of style you’d expect to see on a bank manager in the 1920s.

Joshua Payne

Joshua Payne (1810–1889), engraver and die-sinker, arrived in Adelaide around 1849 and was soon after employed by the Adelaide Assay Office.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson

Henry Lawson (1867-1922), one of Australia's defining authors, is best known for his short stories and ballads depicting the hardship of bush life.

6 portraits in the collection

Wayne Blair, 2007 (printed 2014)

Ingvar Kenne

Portrait, carte de visite photograph

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

Celine Céleste, c. 1860

Charles Clarkington

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Graham Smith 2009

The Kinghorne

Other styles

aka substantial sideburns extending to the lower jaw, paired with a clean-shaven chin and upper lip – was a standard look for gents in pre-Victorian times.

Nicholas Hopwood

Vox pops

It came at a time when, you know, we're all questioning our mortality, things are happening in the world.

Portrait of Joshua Payne Esq., 1840

Daniel Byrne

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on ivory in leather bound case

Purchased 2009

Aubrey Beardsley

Frederick Henry Evans

John Flaus

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

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.

Irving Browning

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, half tone on paper

New York-born Irving Browning (1895-1961) was a self-taught photographer and cinematographer who between 1920 and 1940 created a comprehensive body of work documenting New York City during an era of rapid growth.

1 portrait in the collection

Sydney Ure Smith, 1948

Max Dupain OBE

Purchased 1999

Sir Edward Wheewall Holden

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

Lord Robert May OM KBE FRS FAA

Robert May, Baron May of Oxford OM AC (1936–2020), physicist, chemical engineer, chemist, ecologist and mathematician, once described himself as a ‘scientist with a short attention span.’ Born and educated in Sydney, where he received his PhD in experimental physics in 1959, he lectured at Harvard, Sydney and Princeton before taking up a joint professorship at Imperial College London and Oxford.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson, 1915

William Johnson

Purchased 2009

Luke Cornish

Luke Cornish (b. 1979) is a Sydney-based handmade stencil artist. A self-described former blue-collar worker from Canberra, under the name of E.L.K he began experimenting with stencil cutting and spray paint in his mid-twenties.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Charles Moses

Sir Charles Moses (1900-1988), legendary General Manager of the ABC from 1935 to 1965, was born 21 January 1900 in Lancaster, UK and migrated to Australia in 1922, after four years in the army.

1 portrait in the collection

Daryl Braithwaite

First broadcast on Saturday 31 July

Daryl Braithwaite (b. 1949) finished an apprenticeship as a fitter and turner in 1969, and joined Sherbet shortly afterward.

3 portraits in the collection

Panel discussion

A dynamic panel discussion that interrogates some of the themes revealed in Living Memory.

Study for portrait of Bob Ellis, 1999

Portrait, charcoal on paper

Gift of the artist 2001

Study for portrait of Bob Ellis, 1999

Portrait, charcoal on paper

Gift of the artist 2001

Rachel Griffiths AM

Rachel Griffiths (b. 1968) studied education at Victoria College before working with the community theatre group Woolly Jumpers, Inc.

1 portrait in the collection

Francis Lymburner

Portrait, pencil on paper

Francis Lymburner (1916-1972) was a Queensland-born artist who was educated at Brisbane Grammar and took art classes at Brisbane Technical College.

2 portraits in the collection

Alex Miller, 1992

Rick Amor

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

Australian Tapestry Workshop

The Australian Tapestry Workshop (formerly the Victorian Tapestry Workshop) was established in 1976, following two years of planning and research on the part of its founding patrons, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch and Lady Joyce Delacombe.

2 portraits in the collection

Alex Frayne

London-born, Adelaide-based photographic artist and filmmaker Alex Frayne (b.

2 portraits in the collection

Shea Kirk

Vox pops

So this portrait here is part of a much larger series I've been shooting off and on for a number of years now.

Claudia Karvan OAM

Claudia Karvan OAM (b. 1973), actor, grew up in Sydney and made her first film appearances as a ten-year-old.

1 portrait in the collection

Horace Keats

Horace Keats (1895-1945) came to Australia from his native England in 1915 as accompanist to vaudeville performer Nella Webb.

1 portrait in the collection

Heath Ledger

Heath Ledger was born on the fourth of April 1979, in Perth, Western Australia.

3 portraits in the collection

The 1780s to the 1840s

Eighteenth century men differed from those of the preceding centuries in their preference for beardlessness.

Tania Verstak, 1962 (printed 2006)

Jozef Vissel

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2006

Tania Verstak, 1962

Jozef Vissel

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

Mabel Forrest

Mabel Forrest (née Mills, 1872–1935), writer, was born near Yandilla on the Darling Downs and grew up on various cattle stations in the district, publishing her first poem at age ten.

1 portrait in the collection

Longest reign

Queen Elizabeth II is now the longest-reigning British sovereign

David Malouf

Recorded 2016

Bernard Smith

Bernard Smith (1916-2011) was one of Australia's most important twentieth-century art historians and an influential cultural commentator.

2 portraits in the collection

Michael Klim

Michael Klim (b. 1977) rose to superstar status in Australian swimming in 1998 by winning seven medals in seven events at the World Swimming Championships in Perth.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson, c. 1915

William Johnson

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Henry Lawson, c. 1915

William Johnson

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Interiors

Christopher Chapman previews the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009.

David Brooks

David Brooks, poet, literary critic and academic, studied in the early 1970s at the Australian National University, where he fell in with a group of Canberra writers including AD Hope, Rosemary Dobson, David Campbell and Judith Wright and co-founded Open Door Press with Alan Gould.

1 portrait in the collection

Phillip Noyce AO

Portrait, black and white photograph, pen, and hand coloured photograph on paper

Phillip Noyce AO (b. 1950), director, was part of the first student intake at the Australian Film and Television School in 1973.

2 portraits in the collection

Self portrait, 1999/2005

Tracey Moffatt

Purchased with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AM 2013

Ron Castan AM QC

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2004

Ron Castan AM QC (1939–1999), barrister, played a leading role in some of the most significant Australian litigation involving the rights of Indigenous people.

2 portraits in the collection

Masters of Fare

The exhibition Masters of Fare: Chefs, Winemaking, Providores celebrates those who have championed the unique culinary characteristics and produce of Australia.

Louise Jane Jopling (née Goode, later Rowe)

Sir John Everett Millais 1st Bt

Morris Lurie

Morris Lurie (b. 1938) is a Melbourne-based author of fiction. Born to Jewish parents who had fled Poland before World War 2, he studied architecture and worked in advertising before turning to writing full-time.

1 portrait in the collection

Robert Drewe

Robert Drewe (b. 1943), author, grew up in Perth, where he worked as a junior reporter with the West Australian from 1961 to 1964.

1 portrait in the collection

Anna Pavlova, 1926

Harold Cazneaux

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Claudia Karvan on the set of Love My Way,

Jimmy Pozarik OAM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2007

Baz Luhrmann

Goupil & Cie after Sir Robert Ponsonby Staples, George Barrable

Baz Luhrmann (b. 1962), film director, aspired to be an actor, appearing in Winter of Our Dreams (1981) and studying acting at NIDA before turning to directing.

2 portraits in the collection

Australia v England, 1887

Portrait, photogravure on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

The Writer: Peter Goldsworthy, 2018

by Deidre But-Husaim

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

Dr John Janson-Moore

Based in Sydney, John Janson-Moore (b. 1968) is a visual artist, photographer and filmmaker, working across a broad spectrum of media, encompassing portraiture, documentary and conceptual art.

2 portraits in the collection

A. D. Hope OBE

Melbourne and Sydney Photographic Co

AD Hope OBE (1907-2000), poet, literary critic and academic, was educated at Sydney University before winning a scholarship to Oxford.

2 portraits in the collection

Robert O'Hara Burke, c. 1860

Portrait, albumen paper carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Edward Telford Simpson

Edward Telford Simpson (1889-1965), Alice's grandson, was born the only son of Edward Percy Simpson and his wife Anne.

1 portrait in the collection

Penny Sackett

Recorded 2014

Self portrait

Gluck

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on board

Bernard Smith, n.d.

Arthur Boyd AC OBE

Gift of an anonymous donor 2002

Lola Montes, c. 1845

Joseph Karl Stieler

Purchased 2010

Lewis Morley, 2003

Sage

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2003

William Saurin Lyster

William Saurin Lyster (1828–1880) was an Irish operatic impresario who introduced serious opera to the colonies.

2 portraits in the collection

Sir Robert May AC KT, 1999

Polly Borland

Purchased 2001

Mr and Mrs Horace Keats in the "Christopher Brennan Cycle", 1945

Dora Toovey

Gift of Anne and Brennan Keats 2009

The Writer, Peter Goldsworthy, 2018

Deidre But-Husaim

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

Self portrait, 1930 Margaret Preston. © Art Gallery of New South Wales, gift of the artist at the request of the Trustees 1930

The attractions of bohemia

It's Complicated

In the company of women

Murray Bail, c. 1980 (printed 2018)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

Neilma B. Gantner

Neilma Baillieu Gantner (1922–2015), writer and philanthropist, was the second child of Melbourne retailer Sidney Myer and his wife Merlyn (née Baillieu).

1 portrait in the collection

Drusilla Modjeska

Previous exhibition, 2005

Drusilla Modjeska (b. 1946), writer, feminist and academic, was born in England and moved to Australia in 1971 after several years in Papua New Guinea.

1 portrait in the collection

Peter Brew-Bevan Portraits

In this exhibition Sydney based photographer Peter Brew-Bevan brings together an intimate collection of works that highlight his passion for the genre of portraiture over the last 10 years

Nicholas Hope

Nicholas Hope (b. 1959), shot to international fame in art movie circles as the star of Bad Boy Bubby, a cult Australian film directed by Rolf de Heer and released in 1994.

1 portrait in the collection

Fay Zwicky, c. 1981 (printed 2018)

Purchased 2018

Wayne Lynch

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, selenium toned on paper

Wayne Lynch (b. 1951), surfer and surfboard shaper, grew up in Lorne, Victoria, not far from Bells Beach.

2 portraits in the collection

Ron Castan AM QC, 1995

Kate Gollings

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2001

Nicholas Hope,

Jimmy Pozarik OAM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2007

Tracey Moffatt, 1995

Greg Weight

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

Fay Zwicky

Fay Zwicky (1933–2017), poet and academic, grew up in a cultivated environment in Brighton, Melbourne, where her European Jewish family had lived for four generations.

1 portrait in the collection

Nude self portrait, 1977

Lewis Morley

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

Jane Campion, 2009

Peter Brew-Bevan

Purchased 2011

Robert Drewe (in the swell), 2006

Nicholas Harding

Tom Durkin, The Weekly Times

Purchased 2010

Opera [Mr William Saurin Lyster], 1874

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2016

My Favourite Australian

Previous exhibition, 2008

My Favourite Australian is a project developed in collaboration with ABC TV and the people of Australia.

Tracey Moffatt dreaming, 2017

James Horan

Grace Cossington Smith OBE

Gift of the artist 2019

Self portrait, 1948

Portrait, oil on cardboard

Purchased 2002

Warwick Thornton, 2019 (printed 2022)

Susan Stitt ACS

Gift of the artist 2022

Pat Mackie, 2004

Nancy Borlase AM

Portrait, fibre-tipped pen and pen and ink on paper laid down on cardboard

Purchased 2004

Alan Marshall, n.d.

Louis Kahan AO

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

Bob McTavish

Portrait, montage of gelatin silver photographs on paper

Bob McTavish began surfing in Queensland at the age of twelve - and for decades, he has written, he slept in cars, eating bread, bananas and the occasional spider and surfing at every opportunity.

2 portraits in the collection

Robert Helpmann, 1969

David Moore

Purchased 1998

Patrick Ryan

Portrait, pastel on paper

Patrick Ryan (d. 1990) and Tim Burstall set up Eltham Films in the early 1950s, when the local film industry was moribund.

1 portrait in the collection

Dr. Arthur Martin a'Beckett, c. 1840

an unknown artist

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

Grant Mudford

Grant Mudford (b. 1944) is a Sydney-born, Los Angeles-based photographer renowned for his large-format, abstract depictions of the urban landscape and built environment.

1 portrait in the collection

Jane Campion DNZM

Jane Campion DNZM (b. 1954), director, producer and screenwriter, is the first woman to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes and the second woman to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director, both for her acclaimed film The Piano (1993).

1 portrait in the collection

Ethel Anderson

Explore The Popular Pet Show

Ethel Anderson (née Mason, 1883-1958), writer and artist, was an important figure in the Sydney modern art scene of the 1920s and 30s.

2 portraits in the collection

Davida Allen

Going around a gallery with a child, we point to a painting of a dog and brightly ask ‘What’s that?’ If they don’t say ‘A dog’, we tell them that’s what it is. We don’t say it’s a shape inscribed by an artist that’s popularly understood to signify a dog. That’d only serve to foster a smarty-pants.

Alfred George Stephens

Alfred George Stephens (1865–1933), editor, journalist and publisher, was born and educated in Toowoomba.

1 portrait in the collection

Jimmy Barnes AO

Jimmy Barnes AO (b. 1956), singer/songwriter, is a solo performer and the former lead singer of the quintessential Australian pub band, Cold Chisel.

3 portraits in the collection

Glenn Murcutt, 1980 (printed 2017)

Robert McFarlane

Portrait, oil on composition board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2017

Dr. Arthur Martin a'Beckett, 1845

Charles Abraham

Portrait, cast plaster

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

Murray Bail, c. 1990

Jinx Nolan

Gift of an anonymous donor 2021

Rose Scott, 1913

Annie May Moore

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Judith Wright, 1988 (printed 2021)

Tom Carrington, The Australasian Sketcher

Purchased with funds provided by Jillian Broadbent AC 2021

The Destruction of the Kelly gang (from The Australasian Sketcher, 17 July 1880), 1880

Portrait, wood engraving on paper

Purchased 2017

Shirley Hazzard

Portrait, synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Shirley Hazzard (1931-2016) writer, spent her childhood in Sydney but left with her parents at the age of sixteen for South East Asia and New Zealand.

1 portrait in the collection

Senator Bonner, 1990

Robert Campbell Jnr

Purchased with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2008

Bob Ellis

Portrait, pigment photographic prints on paper, hand ground glass

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

3 portraits in the collection

Blow Back, 2018

Julie Rrap

Gift of the artist 2024. Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program.

Tomáš Kantor in Bell Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, 2023

A Performance of Portraiture

Ralph Heimans tour

Event, Starts Thursday 16 May

Study for The Writer, Peter Goldsworthy, 2018

Deidre But-Husaim

Percy Leason's Aboriginal Portraits

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Commissioned with funds provided by Jillian Broadbent AC and Dr Helen Nugent AO 2018

William Johnson (1873—1948) by Percy Leason

Recognition

Previous exhibition, 1999

Originally conceived as an anthropological record, Percy Leason’s powerful 1934 portraits of Victorian Aboriginal people are today considered to be a highlight of 20th century Australian portraiture

Tracey, 1986 (printed 2013)

Michael Riley

Purchased 2013

Tim Flannery

Recorded 2016

Leigh Bowery in Fur Coat, c. 1983 (printed 2005)

David Gwinnutt

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Gideon Obarzanek, 2012

Dave Tacon

Purchased 2012

Alan Alder

Alan Alder (1937–2019), dancer and ballet teacher, began his career studying tap and Scottish highland dancing in Canberra.

2 portraits in the collection

Peter Skrzynecki OAM

Of Polish/Ukrainian descent, Peter Skrzynecki was born in 1945 in Germany and came to Australia with his parents in 1949.

1 portrait in the collection

The Parlour

The Victorian era has been described as one wherein death was a part of everyday experience. People died at home having been nursed in their final illnesses by family members.

Murray Bail, 1980-1981

Fred Williams

Gift of an anonymous donor 1999. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Tracey Moffatt, 1995

Greg Weight

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

Ellie Cole AM

Ellie Cole AM (b. 1991), swimming champion, is Australia's most decorated female Paralympian.

1 portrait in the collection

Emily's brush, 1994

Greg Weight

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

Judith Wright

Judith Wright (1915–2000), poet, conservationist and Aboriginal land rights campaigner, was born at Thalgaroch Station, near Armidale, NSW, into a pastoralist family whose origins go back to the first settlement in the Hunter Valley in the 1820s.

3 portraits in the collection

Bob Ellis, 1999

Purchased with funds provided by the Basil Bressler Bequest 2001

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

Self portrait in reflection, 1973

Lewis Morley

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

Christopher Brennan

Christopher Brennan (1870–1932), poet, was born to Irish parents in Sydney.

2 portraits in the collection

Charles Troedel

Charles Troedel (1835-1906), born in Hamburg, was working in Norway when he was headhunted by AW Schuhkrafft, a Melbourne printer who seeking European craftsmen.

1 portrait in the collection

Lisa McCune

Recorded 2022

Jacob Nash, 2017

Ingvar Kenne

Two iBooks of authentic records

Gift of the artist 2020. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Prison and death in the 19th century

Learning resources

These books include sixteen inmates including Ned Kelly, Captain Moonlite and Frederick Deeming and twelve sketches of the deceased, including several children. For Year 7 – 9 students.

Rachel Griffiths, 2002 (printed 2004)

Karin Catt

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Sir Robert Gibson

Sir Robert Gibson GBE (1863-1934) trained in design and drafting in Glasgow, where he began work as a designer at an iron company; he soon became manager of its London office.

1 portrait in the collection

Helen Garner

Opportunities for support

Helen Garner (b. 1942), author and journalist, is one of Australia's best-known writers.

8 portraits in the collection

John Liangis in front of William Bligh, c.1776 by John Webber (attributed)

New portrait acquisitions and commissions

New portraits for the collection which reflect great moments in our history and have wonderful stories to tell.

Philippe Mora

Philippe Mora (b. 1949), filmmaker, artist and writer, is the eldest son of artist Mirka Mora and restauranteur and gallery owner Georges Mora.

1 portrait in the collection

The 1890s to the 1940s

Although the tough, weathered, hard-drinking bushmen of the kind mythologised by writers like Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson are popularly associated with the character of late nineteenth century Australia, it was also a time when alternative ideas about identity began to come into play.

The Honourable Chief Justice Susan Kiefel AC

The Hon Chief Justice Susan Kiefel AC

The Hon. Chief Justice Susan Kiefel AC (b. 1954) became Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia in 2017 and is the first woman to have held the role.

1 portrait in the collection

Tribute

Bob Ellis

Magazine article, 2016

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

George Case

Portrait, pencil on paper

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

Alex Miller, 1992

Rick Amor

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

Carol Jerrems

Carol Jerrems (1949–1980) was a photographer known for her intimate portraits of friends, lovers and others occupying the progressive social and creative circles in which she moved.

9 portraits in the collection

Hardtmuth Lahm

Hardtmuth Lahm (1912-1981), commercial artist and cartoonist, came to Australia from Estonia as a sixteen-year-old.

1 portrait in the collection

A G Stephens, c. 1910 (printed later)

an unknown artist

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Richard Fitzgerald

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

Richard Fitzgerald (1772-1840), convict, public servant and settler, spent four years of his seven-year sentence imprisoned (probably on a floating 'hulk') at Portsmouth before arriving in Sydney in 1791, along with his private assets.

1 portrait in the collection

Blue Collar Icon

Dr Sarah Engledow delves into the life of union leader Pat Mackie who is depicted in a portrait by Nancy Borlase AM.

Subtle emotion

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2010

Christopher Chapman considers photographer Rozalind Drummond's portrait of author Nam Le.

Portrait of Alec Campbell, 2001-2004

Terry Eichler

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

George Michael Prendergast

Carrington Photo Galleries

George Michael Prendergast (1854-1937), printer and premier, was born to an Irish goldminer and his wife and was apprenticed to the printer of the Pleasant Creek News in 1868.

1 portrait in the collection

Clara Crosbie, aged 12 years, now on exhibition at the Australian Waxworks

Clara Crosbie, aged 12 years, now on exhibition at the Australian Waxworks, c. 1885

Portrait, carte de visite photograph

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of John McPhee 2018

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

The Australian Cricket Team 1882

The Australian cricket team of 1882 was the third side to tour England and the team whose defeat of England at The Oval in August of that year initiated the 'The Ashes' Test series.

1 portrait in the collection

NPPP 2009 exhibition essay

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

Jenny Sages

Significant Australian Women 1913–2013

Jenny Sages (b. 1933), artist, was born to Russian Jewish parents in Shanghai and came to Australia with her family in 1948.

34 portraits in the collection

First Ladies

Previous exhibition, 2013

First Ladies profiles women who have achieved noteworthy firsts over the past 100 years.

Ron Barassi AM

Ron Barassi AM (1936‒2023) is among the most celebrated individuals in the history of Australian Rules football.

2 portraits in the collection

Alexis Wright

Alexis Wright (b. 1950), author and activist, won the Miles Franklin Award in 2007 for her novel Carpentaria and the 2018 Stella Prize for her collective memoir Tracker.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Henry Huxley

Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895) travelled to Australia as a member of the expedition conducted by Owen Stanley on the Rattlesnake between 1846 and 1850.

2 portraits in the collection

A bear of great substance

Just in time for Christmas, Angus reflects on the most special present he has ever received.

Tim Winton, 2004

Quentin Jones

Previous exhibition, 2022

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

National Photographic Portrait Prize 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.

Kerry Walker, c. 1979

Stuart Campbell

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Estate of Stuart Campbell 2012

Ron Barassi, 1975

Rennie Ellis

Previous exhibition, 2009

Purchased 2006

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

Vanity Fair Portraits

Photographs 1913-2008

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

On train from New York to Memphis, July 4, 1956 by Alfred Wertheimer

Elvis at 21 media information

25 October 2013

Archived media releases 2013

Press releases and images downloads for media.

Reverend Nathaniel Kinsman, c. 1880

William B. Latimer, W B Latimer Photo Art Studio

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite

Purchased 2013

Promise Fulfilled

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

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

Henry Edwards

Henry (Harry) Edwards (1827–1891), actor and entomologist, arrived in Melbourne in 1853 after a short-lived attempt at studying for a career in law.

1 portrait in the collection

Patrick White and Manoly Lascaris, 1987

Max Dupain OBE

Gift of Danina Dupain Anderson 2018. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Alan Marshall AM OBE

Alan Marshall AM OBE (1902-1984), writer, began life in Victoria’s Western District.

4 portraits in the collection

Kylie Tennant, early 1980s (printed 2018)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

Kerry Walker AM

Magazine article by Karen Vickery, 2016

Kerry Walker AM, actor, graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1974 and made her professional stage debut in a melée in Act 1 of Romeo and Juliet with the Australian Ballet.

1 portrait in the collection

Diamond Doll

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

Glossy 2

Faces, Magazines, Now

Previous exhibition, 2005

Following the success of Glossy: Faces, Magazines, Now in 1999 the National Portrait Gallery again highlights the huge array of contemporary portraiture in the pages of magazines.

Robert Dessaix, 1998

Robert Hannaford AM

Archived media releases 2014

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Robert Dessaix 2000
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Arcadia media information

31 July 2014

Press releases and image downloads for media.

A self-portrait in focus

Magazine article by Kim Appleby, 2002

In her self-portrait, Tracey Moffatt presents herself as her work.

Behrouz Boochani

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2008

Kurdish-Iranian journalist, writer and filmmaker, Behrouz Boochani, was born in Iran in 1983.

1 portrait in the collection

Pretty in peach

It's remarkable that the inner Melbourne suburb of Richmond has produced two of Australia's most successful opera singers. Three decades apart, but within a short distance of each other, both Helen Porter Mitchell and Florence Wilson were born.

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.

Sylvia Breamer

Sylvia Bremer (also Breamer) (1897–1943), actor, was born in Double Bay, Sydney, in June 1897 into a British-Australian naval family.

2 portraits in the collection

René Primevère Lesson

Portraits in the Landscape

René Primevère Lesson (1794–1849), French surgeon, naturalist, ornithologist, and herpetologist, entered the Naval Medical School in Rochefort at the age of sixteen.

1 portrait in the collection

Open Air

Previous exhibition, 2008

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

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.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018

Previous exhibition, 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.

Nicholas Harding

28 Portraits

Previous exhibition, 2017

Nicholas Harding: 28 portraits features paintings of Robert Drewe, John Bell and Hugo Weaving alongside gorgeously coloured recent oil portraits, delicate gouaches and bold ink and charcoal drawings.

Arthur Beetson, 1968 (printed 2019)

Ern McQuillan OAM

Previous exhibition, 2023

Purchased 2019

National Photographic Portrait Prize 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.

Past, present, future, 2002 by Wang Qingsong
M+ Sigg Collection

Chinese Art

Portrait, oil on composition board

A short overview of modern Chinese art from 1949 to the present.

James McClelland, 1946

Nancy Borlase AM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Gillian Appleton (McClelland) 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Visiting with a school group

Visual Stories

Access support for students.

Horatio S. Wills

Horatio Spencer Howe Wills (1811–1861), pastoralist, politician and newspaper proprietor, was born in Sydney, several months after the death of his father, Edward Spencer Wills, a merchant and shipowner who'd arrived in New South Wales under a life sentence for highway robbery in 1799.

2 portraits in the collection

Sylvia Breamer, c. 1920

Witzel Studios

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2017

Sylvia Breamer, c. 1917-1919

an unknown artist

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2010

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2017

The considered life

Andrew Sayers asks whether a portrait can truly be the examination of a life.

Percy, Reginald, Monty and George Faithfull, undated by Henry Dorner. Image courtesy the National Museum of Australia.

An affray which deserves particular mention

Ben Hall and his gang outdone, 6 February 1865

Bushranger Ben Hall and his cronies held around 40 people hostage in a pub north-west of Goulburn, telling their captives ‘don’t be alarmed; we only came here for a bit of fun’.

Tim Burstall

Self Portraits in Australia

Tim Burstall (1927-2004) set up Eltham Films in the early 1950s, when the local film industry was moribund.

2 portraits in the collection

To Look Within

Previous exhibition, 2004

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

Time and light

In Gallery Seven

Previous exhibition, 2023

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.

Australian of the Year

Inspiring a Nation

Previous exhibition, 2010

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

Ronald Dale Barassi, 2000

Lewis Miller

Magazine article by Eric Smith, 2004

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

Creative space

Eric Smith describes the agony and finally the ecstasy of winning the 1982 Archibald Prize with the portrait of Peter Sculthorpe.

The National Portrait Gallery building in twilight

On a human scale

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2006

The design concepts behind the new National Portrait Gallery building in Canberra.

Edmond John Hogan

Portrait, albumen photograph on carte de visite

Edmond John (Ned) Hogan (1883-1964), farmer and premier, left school early and engaged in road-making, timber-cutting, farm-labouring and rabbiting in addition to farm chores at home.

1 portrait in the collection

Mr and Mrs Case, 1864

Alexander Fox and Co

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Henry Louis Bertrand, ca. 1865 photographed by the Milligan Brothers. Collection of the State Library of NSW

A passion eating into your vitals

The ‘Mad Dentist of Wynyard Square’ in court, 18 December 1865

Archived media releases 2019

The salacious and sordid details of Henry Kinder’s death transfixed Sydneysiders with a case combining murder with seduction, mesmerism, blackmail and poisoning.

Alluring Performance Brings Gallery to Life

5 April 2019

See the Gallery through a different lens and experience the portraits with a unique sensorial performance of movement, voice and live sound.

M H Wednesday 11.15am from the series Self-harm, 2004

Big it up

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2005

Former National Portrait Gallery Curator Magda Keaney was a member of the selection panel of the Schwepes Photographic Portrait Prize 2004 at the National Portrait Gallery London.

The Tichborne Claimant (Arthur Orton), c. 1872

Maull & Co Photographers

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Free Range Cousins, 2015 by Jennifer Stocks

Children of the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2016

Learning resource

Learning resource archive

Senses, movement and imagination in portraits of children from the 2016 Prize. For Year 1 - 3 students.

Self-portrait with bowler hat, 1885–6 by Paul Cézanne

Hail Cézanne

Magazine article by John Elderfield, 2017

John Elderfield lauds the portraiture of Paul Cézanne, the artist described by both Matisse and Picasso as ‘the father of us all’.

Alina Gozin'a

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

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.

Not perspiring, but glowing.

The cultural history of radiance.

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2002

Angus Trumble explores the creative manifestations of radiance.

The Story So Far...

A reflection on the National Portrait Gallery's first four years.

The 'Multi Exposed Hand'

22 January 2005

Magazine article by Michelle Fracaro, 2004

Photographer Jozef Vissel talks about his ‘Multi Exposed Hand’ portrait of Sydney Opera House architect Jørn Utzon.

Bloodlines

Michelle Fracaro describes Lionel Lindsay's woodcut The Jester (self-portrait).

True Stories

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2005

The story behind the creation of the portrait of Helen Garner by Jenny Sages.

Nannultera, a young cricketer of the Natives' Training Institution, Poonindie , 1854 John Michael Crossland

The catechist and the cricketer

Magazine article by Stephen Valambras Graham, 2021

Stephen Valambras Graham traverses the intriguing socio-political terrain behind two iconic First Nations portraits of the 1850s.

The Obama effect

Magazine article by Kim Sajet, 2018

Kim Sajet reflects on two portraits with a power that extends beyond gallery walls.

Powerful energy

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2010

Dr Christopher Chapman explores the symbolism in the portrait commission of Marcia Langton by Brook Andrew.

The Gladiators (Norm Provan and Arthur Summons)

Who's that?

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

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

Pat and Richard Larter, Luddenham, 1970s

Pin-ups

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2008

Christopher Chapman describes the art and life of Australian artist Richard Larter.

Portrait of a Modernist

Magazine article by Dimity Goldie, 2003

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

Stevie

Magazine article by Gregory McBean, 2005

Gregory McBean writes about photographing recent ARIA Hall of Fame inductee, singer Stevie Wright.

Old Blighty

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2016

Angus Trumble ponders the many faces of William Bligh.

Australian visit in Denmark

Magazine article by Mette Skougaard, 2006

In April 2006 the National Portrait Gallery showcased Australian portraits at the Fredenksborg Castle in Denmark.

The 1850s to the 1880s

The restrained and cultivated facial hair fashions evident through the first decades of the 1800s were on the wane by the middle of the century, when hirsute faces became mainstream.

The 1950s to the present day

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2010

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.

Extremely generous and incredibly close

Michael Desmond examines the daguerreotype portraits created by American artist Chuck Close.

Shifting pixels

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2007

In 2007 the National Portrait Gallery produced its first online exhibition featuring the animated self portraits created by some of Australia’s most innovative visual artists and animators.

Reflections on portraiture

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2004

An extract from the 2004 Nuala O'Flaaherty Memorial Lecture at the Queen Victoria Musuem and Art Gallery in Launceston in which Andrew Sayers reflects on the unique qualities of a portrait gallery.

Announcing.... In their own words

24 November 2020

Archived media releases 2020

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

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.

Portrait of the Gallery

Magazine article by Graeme Dix, 2016

A design diary retrospective.

Commander Skyring, Gang-gang cockatoo by Leila Jeffreys

A real tweet

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2016

Sarah Engledow plays wingman to Leila Jeffreys.

Bewitching

Magazine article by Roger Neill, 2006

Roger Neill delves into the life of a lesser-known Australian diva, Frances Alda.

Queen Victoria

Magazine article by Julia Gillard AC, 2015

Last Sunday I had the privilege of appearing at the Canberra Writers’ Festival in conversation with Julia Baird. The subject of our session was Julia’s recent biography, Victoria the Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman who Ruled an Empire.

Joan Alone

Julia Gillard pays poignant tribute to her friend and mentor, the late Joan Kirner, Victoria’s first and only female premier.

Portrait of Lady Eyre Williams (Jessie Gibbon)

Chance encounter

Magazine article by Peter Jeffrey, 2016

Joanna Gilmour explores the life and times of one of Melbourne's early socialites, Jessie Eyre Williams.

Hottie's Snifter to port

Peter Jeffrey trips the hound nostalgic.

The Cutmear sisters, Jane and Lucy, c. 1842

A man of superior attainments

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

Joanna Gilmour explores the life of a colonial portrait artist, writer and rogue Thomas Griffiths Wainewright.

You beauty

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Joanna Gilmour explores the fact and fictions surrounding the legendary life of Irish-born dancer Lola Montez.

In character on location

Magazine article by Alistair McGhie, 2011

A photograph of Claudia Karvan that blends actor, character, photographer and captures the creative collaboration of the television series Love my way.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023

Learning resources

We encourage you to look, to feel, to think, to question and most importantly, to identify and connect.

Self-portrait in black jumper, 2017 Graeme Drendel

Be frank

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2020

Close encounters are the genesis for Graeme Drendel’s enticing portraiture.

Cooey! An Australian Song

Magazine article by Christine Clark, 2009

"Coo-ey, Coo-ey, Coo-ey, Coo-ey—Love has caught the strain, Coo-ey, Coo-ey, Coo-ey, Coo-ey—it whispers back again." The “Australian lady” who composed these fruity lyrics was none other than Desda— Jane Davies, sometime Messiter (née Price) of Leddicott, Lavender Bay.

My Favourite Australian

The Australian public was invited in 2008 to vote for their favourite Australian. After the votes were tallied an exhibition of the top-ten Popular Australians and the top-twenty unsung heroes was displayed at the National Portrait Gallery.

Thua Tich, South Vietnam, 1969-06 by Christopher Bellis

The jungle look

Magazine article by David Gist, 2019

David Gist steps beyond the public relations veneer of Australia’s official Vietnam War portrait photographs.

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

5 January 2021

Archived media releases 2021

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.

Mrs Cameron and the V&A

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2003

In March 2003 Magda Keaney travelled to London to join the photography section of the Victoria & Albert Museum for three months.

Modern Australian Women

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2005

Close contemporaries, Thea Proctor, Margaret Preston and Grace Cossington Smith were frequently sources of inspiration and irritation to each other.

All in the Family

Magazine article by Barbara Blackman AO, 2003

In 2000, Barbara Blackman donated a portrait of her close friends - poet Judith Wright, her husband Jack McKinney and their daughter Meredith - painted by Charles Blackman.

The mind's eye

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2017

Christopher Chapman takes a trip through the doors of perception, arriving at the junction of surrealism and psychoanalysis.

Where the wild things are

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

Michael Desmond explores the complex portrait of Dr Bob Brown by Harold 'The Kangaroo' Thornton.

Judicial portraits

Magazine article by Leslie Moran, 2007

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

Me Myself I

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2001

Andrew Sayers explores the self-portraits created by Australian artist Sidney Nolan.

Arianne McNaught

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

Boyd to man

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2016

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

Friends and Acquaintances

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

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

Home truths

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

Despite once expressing a limited interest in the self portrait, the idea of it has figured strongly in much of Tracey Moffatt's work and has done so in some of her most distinctive and compelling images.

Naked ambition

Magazine article by Celina Fox, 2006

Joanna Gilmour dives into the life of Australian swimming legend Annette Kellerman.

Portrait of an English Woman c. 1532-5 (detail)

A new perspective

An exhibition devoted to Hans Holbein's English commissions shows the portraitist bringing across the Channel new technical developments in art - with a dazzling facility.

Lauded legacy

Magazine article by Karl James, 2015

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

Emmanuel at bedtime, 2011 by George Mifsud

To startle the eye

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2012

National Photographic Portrait Prize judge Joanna Gilmour previews the 2012 exhibition.

Is the truth of portraiture vested exclusively in likeness?

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2006

Curator Michael Desmond introduces the exhibition Truth and Likeness, an investigation of the importance of likeness to portraiture.

Facing Australia, Composite portrait: Facing St Lucia, 2003

Conflicting images

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2008

Michael Desmond reveals the origins of composite portraits and their evolution in the pursuit of the ideal.

Miss Robertson of Colac (Dolly), 1885-86

Brothers on farms

Magazine article by Malcolm Robertson, 2011

Malcolm Robertson tells the family history of one of Australia's earliest patrons of the arts, his Scottish born great great great grandfather, William Robertson.

Hearts of Darkness

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2006

The National Portrait Gallery's acquisition of the portrait of Edward John Eyre by pioneering English photographer Julia Margaret Cameron.

The highest honour

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2007

Bringing eminent scientist Frank Fenner and artist Jude Rae together for the National Portrait Gallery commission was like matchmaking.

Satoshi Tokuhiro at Horai Gorge, Takaruzuka, Hyogo from Young Samurai – Bodybuilders of Japan Photography by Tamotsu Yato

Way of the body

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2019

Christopher Chapman reveals the intersection of iconoclastic Japanese figures Yukio Mishima and Tamotsu Yato.

Wicked but Virtuous

Magazine article by Lee Tulloch, 2011

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

Self Portrait, Stuart Campbell by Stuart Campbell

The essence of you

Lee Tulloch remembers her great friend NIDA-trained actor turned photographer Stuart Campbell.

Getting a head

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2015

Alexandra Roginski gets a feel for phrenology’s fundamentals.

Eileen Dunne in The Hospital for Sick Children, 1940

The incomparable Beaton

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

To accompany the exhibition Cecil Beaton: Portraits, held at the NPG in 2005, this article is drawn from Hugo Vickers's authorised biography, Cecil Beaton (1985).

Of jumpers and river gums, red

Magazine article by Diana O'Neil, 2016

Diana O’Neil on Noel Counihan’s vivid 1971 portrait of Alan Marshall.

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.

Talking heads

In their own words lead researcher Louise Maher on the novel project that lets the Gallery’s portraits speak for themselves.

Terms and conditions

NPPP 2015

More about the NPPP 2015

Conditions of entry for the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2015.

Pushpamala N

by Ajay Sinha

Artist essays

Pushpamala N. was born in 1956 in Bangalore. Her early training was in sculpture, but as her practice progressed she brought an early enthusiasm for narrative figuration into her photographic work.

Trumble's way

Magazine article by Sandra Phillips, 2020

At the end of a summer break one is tempted to say that there is nothing much to report. Isn’t one restful holiday very much like another?

Vincent Brady leading anti Bicentenary Protest, Brisbane, 1987 Michael Aird

Activating the space

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

Themes and variations (Annelies) A13, 1946

Listening to form

Magazine article by Jane Kinsman, 2007

National Gallery of Australia curator Jane Kinsman discusses the portraiture of Henri Matisse.

Seduce, Amuse, Entertain

NPPP 2007 exhibition essay

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

The National Portrait Gallery's 20th birthday party

The National Portrait Gallery's 20th Anniversary

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2007

Last month we marked the twentieth anniversary of the formal establishment of the National Portrait Gallery, the tenth of the opening of our signature building, and the fifth of our having become a statutory authority under Commonwealth legislation.

Seduce Amuse Entertain

Michael Desmond profiles a handful of the entrants in first National Photographic Portrait Prize and notes emerging themes and categories.

Thomas Mathewson (inset) and his studio on Queen Street, c. 1908 by Thomas Mathewson & Co

Northern exposure

Magazine article by Phil Manning, 2017

Phil Manning celebrates a century of Brisbane photographic portraiture.

The Long Awaited, 2008 by Patricia Piccinini

In the flesh

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2015

An exhibition of humanness in ten themes by Penelope Grist.

Girl with Cigarette, c. 1925 by Agnes Goodsir

Agnes enigma

Magazine article by Karen Quinlan AM, 2019

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

Poison pen

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2010

Michael Desmond examines the career of the eighteenth-century suspected poisoner and portrait artist Thomas Griffiths Wainewright.

The eye and the heart

Magazine article by Barry York, 2018

Nici Cumpston immerses herself in the collective vision of the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2020.

Star signs

Barry York charts the course from childhood request to autographed celebrity portrait anthology.

Charlie's angles

Magazine article by Stephen Phillips, 2017

Stephen Phillips talks to neurosurgeon Charlie Teo about his practice, perspectives and the anatomy of hope.

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.

Rehearsing Godot (Mullins as Lucky) 4.11.2013 by Nicholas Harding

Waiting for Godot

Magazine article by Anne O'Hehir, 2019

'Artist and actors, advancing spasmodically, find their rhythm together' writes Sarah Engledow.

Snap chat

2019 National Photographic Portrait Prize judge Anne O’Hehir looks beneath the surface of this year’s entries.

Movement is my radar

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2015

Michael Desmond charts the path of portraiture, arriving at Julian Opie’s digital realm.

Washington preview

Magazine article by Lauretta Morton, 2005

Ron Ramsey, former Director of Cultural Relations at the Embassy of Australia interviewed NPG Washington Director, Marc Pachter, about their building renovations.

Studio of the American & Australasian Photographic Co., Hill End, 1872

A rogue's calling card

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2008

Joanna Gilmour explores the stories behind the ninteenth-century carte de visites of bushrangers Frank Gardiner and Fred Lowry.

Amy Johnson wearing a woollen suit from the collection of flight clothes designed by Madame Schiaparelli for her solo flight from London to Cape Town, 1938 unknown photographer

Air wear

Magazine article by Esther Agostino, 2015

Aviation carried women’s roles in society to greater heights – fashion followed suit.

The play’s the thing

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

Penelope Grist charts an immersive path through Stuart Spence’s photography.

Generous Janice

Dr Sarah Engledow puts four gifts to the National Portrait Gallery’s Collection in context.

The stately lotus

I spent much of my summer holiday at D’Omah, on the outskirts of Yogyakarta. Lotus and waterlilies sprout in extraordinary profusion in artful ponds amid palms and deep scarlet ginger flowers.

A non-material and non-physical portrait

Lecture, 21 May 2011

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2007

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

Money and swat

Andrew Sayers discusses the real cost of George Lambert's Self portrait with gladioli 1922.

Mia Wasikowska as Robyn Davidson at Hamelin Pool, 2013 by Matt Nettheim

Hump days

Magazine article by Jessica Bolton, 2017

Jessica Bolton navigates the parallel tracks documenting Robyn Davidson’s astonishing journey.

Fine and dandy

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Whether the result of misadventure or misdemeanour, many accomplished artists were transported to Australia where they ultimately left a positive mark on the history of art in this country.

No Laughing Matter

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2002

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

Rethinking foundational histories

Magazine article by Kate Fullagar, 2019

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

Lovers of light

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2008

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

A nose by any other name

Magazine article by Jane Kinsman, 2013

In the exhibition William Kentridge: Drawn from Africa at the National Gallery of Australia, the artist marries Gogol's Tsarist Russia, with that of Stalin and the damaging history of his homeland, South Africa.

Worth her salt

Magazine article by Jenny Gall, 2017

Jerrold Nathan's portrait of Jessie Street shows the elegant side of a many-faceted lady.

Their brilliant careers

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

Self-portrait in white jacket , 1901-02 Hugh Ramsay

Wunderkind lost

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2021

Inga Walton on the brief but brilliant life of Hugh Ramsay.

Of ice and men

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2019

Frank Hurley's celebrated images document the heroism and minutiae of Australian exploration in Antarctica.

Eating the seasons

Anne Sanders imbibes Tony Bilson’s gastronomic revolution.

Shop Talk

Magazine article by Stephen Phillips, 2016

Angus and the arbiters talk (photo) shop for the National Photographic Portrait Prize.

The Conciliation, 1840 by Benjamin Duterrau

The art of conciliation

Magazine article by Gareth Knapman, 2017

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

Helen Blaxland judging flower arrangements, c. 1940s photographer unknown

Petal to the mettle

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

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

Mexico from the Palace painted by ‘Maximilian Emperor'

Empirical art

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2022

Several years ago I came across this curious painting on the racks in a distant, dusty corner of the store room in the basement of the Johannesburg Art Gallery in South Africa. Since then the mystery surrounding it has never been far from my mind.

Yanyuwa young men, The Song Peoples Sessions CD Launch Rehearsals, Yanyuwa Country, 2012 Benjamin Warlngundu Ellis

Us being ourselves

Penelope Grist talks to photographer Benjamin Warlngundu Ellis about capturing moments, telling stories and keeping Culture strong.

Fits of delicacy and despair

Magazine article by Alison Weir, 2011

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

Icons and imagery

Alison Weir explores the National Portrait Gallery, London and the BP Portrait Award to find what makes a good painted portrait - past and present.

Heartfelt

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

The portrait of Janet and Horace Keats with the spirit of the poet Christopher Brennan is brought to life by artist Dora Toovey.

The importance of being bearded

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2012

Joanna Gilmour discovers that the beards of the ill-fated explorers Burke and Wills were as epic as their expedition to traverse Australia from south to north.

Studio portrait of Lord Kitchener, British Secretary of State for War, 1914 by J Russell & Sons

All the way with K of K

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2016

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

The life of Bryant

Magazine article by Tenille Hands, 2018

Tenille Hands explores a portrait prize gifted to the National Screen and Sound Archive.

Costantini's convictions

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2017

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

The Mutineers turning Lieut Bligh and part of the Officers and Crew adrift from His Majesty's Ship the Bounty

High & Bligh

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2008

Joanna Gilmour explores the 1790 portrait of William Bligh by Robert Dodd.

Cover, first minute book of the Tasmanian Society of Natural History

Embrace your inner nerd

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2011

The southern winter has arrived. For people in the northern hemisphere (the majority of humanity) the idea of snow and ice, freezing mist and fog in June, potentially continuing through to August and beyond, encapsulates the topsy-turvidom of our southern continent.

The numbers man

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

In a good paddock

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2011

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.

Sydney city (Patrick White and Tom Uren, Hiroshima Day demonstration), 1984

The activist A-list

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

Dr Sarah Engledow examines a number of figures in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery who were pioneers or substantial supporters of the seminal Australian environmental campaigns of the early 1970s and 1980s.

Big bouquet of Blackmans

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

Dr. Sarah Engledow explores the context surrounding Charles Blackman's portrait of Judith Wright, Jack McKinney and their daughter Meredith.

Home and away

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

Sir William Dobell painted the portraits of Sir Charles Lloyd Jones and Sir Hudson Fysh, who did much to promote the image of Australia in this country and abroad.

Mick Jagger, Madonna and Tony Curtis, 1997

The Vanity model

Magazine article by David Friend, 2009

Vanity Fair Editor David Friend describes how the rebirth of the magazine sated our desire for access into the lives of celebrities and set the standard for the new era of portrait photography.

NPPP 2016 exhibition essay

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

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

Flash mob

Sarah Engledow trains her exacting lens on the nine photographs from 20/20.

Anna Culliton

Explore The Popular Pet Show

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.

Noel McKenna

Explore The Popular Pet Show

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.

Through blue eyes

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

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.

History

About us

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

20/20 launch speech

Dr Helen Nugent AO, Chairman, National Portrait Gallery at the opening of 20/20: Celebrating twenty years with twenty new portrait commissions.

Portrait of Thea Proctor, 1905 by George Lambert

The real Thea

Long after the portraitist became indifferent to her, and died, a beguiling portrait hung over its subject.

Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza and David R. L. Litchfield at Villa Favorita, Lugano, Switzerland, 1989 © Nicola Graydo

The Thyssen Art Macabre

Books seldom make me angry but this one did. At first, I was powerfully struck by the uncanny parallels that existed between the Mellons of Pittsburgh and the Thyssens of the Ruhr through the same period, essentially the last quarter of the nineteenth century.

A real Pratt

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

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 shipwright's arms

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

Sunset in the drawing room at Chesney Wold by Hablot Knight Brown

Portraiture in a Bleak House

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

It may seem an odd thing to do at one’s leisure on a beautiful tropical island, but I spent much of my midwinter break a few weeks ago re-reading Bleak House.

The Right Honourable Sir Ninian Stephen KGAK GCMG GCVO KBE QC, 2006 by Rick Amor

Prima facie

Sarah Engledow casts a judicious eye over portraits in the Victorian Bar’s Peter O’Callaghan QC Portrait Gallery.

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.

Less than six degrees of separation

Lecture, 28 May 2011

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

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

The Rothschilds, the Montefiores, and the Victorian Gold Rush

Some years ago my colleague Andrea Wolk Rager and I spent several days in the darkened basement of a Rothschild Bank, inspecting every one of the nearly 700 autochromes created immediately before World War I by the youthful Lionel de Rothschild.

The art of Inner Worlds

Lecture, 7 May 2011

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

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.

Faces of war

Lecture, 14 May 2011

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.

Some prime ministers

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

Nicholas Harding: 28 Portraits

Exhibition essay