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Mary Windeyer (née Bolton, 1837-1912), women's rights campaigner, was one of the nine children of Robert Thorley Bolton, a clergyman who emigrated to New South Wales in 1839.

3 portraits in the collection

Mary Rouse

Mary Hassall (nee Rouse), the eldest of Richard and Elizabeth's children, was born in England and made the sea journey to New South Wales as an infant.

2 portraits in the collection

Mary Ware

Jeremiah Ware (1792–1878) arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1822 with his wife, Mary (née Brooks, c.

1 portrait in the collection

Ann Mary Windeyer

Ann Mary Windeyer (née Rudd, c. 1783–1865) arrived in Sydney in 1828 with her husband Charles Windeyer (1780–1855) and nine of their ten children.

1 portrait in the collection

Queen Mary

George Frederick Ernest Albert, The Duke of Cornwall and York and later King George V (1865-1936), was the son of Edward VII, the man for whom the Edwardian era was named.

3 portraits in the collection

Mary MacQueen

Mary MacQueen studied for a year at the George Bell School after the war, and for another year at RMIT a decade later.

2 portraits in the collection

Mary Moore

Mary Moore (b. 1957) is a West Australian portrait artist. She began formal art training in Claremont at the age of fifteen, later attending the Western Australian Institute of Technology and Royal College of Art, London.

4 portraits in the collection

Lady Mary Hay

Portrait, pastel and charcoal on paper

Lady Hay, née Chalmers (c. 1806-1892) was reported at the time of her death to have been about ten years older than Hay.

1 portrait in the collection

Disillusion self portrait, 1983

Mary MacQueen

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Robin MacQueen 2007

Ann Mary Windeyer, 1847

G Ziegler

Portrait, pastel and gouache on paper laid down on backing sheet

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Joanna Russell Maher (née Windeyer) 2018

Sister Mary Brady

Sister Mary Brady OP (1922-2014), born in Tamworth, is a self-taught painter, though she did receive critiques from Joshua Smith and Norman Carter.

1 portrait in the collection

Dame Mary Gilmore DBE

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Dame Mary Gilmore DBE (1865–1962), poet, journalist and social reformer, was born near Goulburn and had an itinerant childhood as her father moved the family around New South Wales for work.

3 portraits in the collection

Mary Gilmore

In their own words

Recorded 1957

Mary, Botany Bay tribe, 1836

William Fernyhough

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Dr Robert Edwards AO 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Mary Hassall (née Rouse), c. 1850

Portrait, hand coloured photograph

Gift of Pamela Glasson 2009
Collected by Leila Haigh (nee Rouse)

Mary Windeyer, c. 1891

Freeman Brothers

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on studio mount

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of J.B. Windeyer 2018

Mary Ware, c. 1854

Robert Dowling

Portrait, oil on canvas on board

Purchased with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy and Rosalind Blair Murphy 2014

Mary Windeyer, 1850s

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on ivory

Gift of the Windeyer family 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Mary Elizabeth Maud Chomley OBE

Mary Elizabeth Maud Chomley OBE (1872–1960) has been described as the 'divine angel of mercy' for Australian prisoners of war during the First World War.

1 portrait in the collection

Dame Mary Gilmore, 1961

Max Dupain OBE

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2003

Duchess of Cornwall and York (later Queen Mary), 1903

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Peter Roberts 2015

Duchess of Cornwall and York (later Queen Mary), 1903

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Peter Roberts 2015

Duchess of Cornwall and York (later Queen Mary), 1903

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Peter Roberts 2015

Mary Tindale, 1841

Maurice Felton

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Mary MacQueen, 1990

Anne Zahalka

Portrait, type C Duraflex print on paper

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

Mary Katatjuku Pan, 2021

Robert Fielding

Portrait, inkjet print on paper

Purchased with funds provided by the Annual Appeal for Contemporary Australian Photography 2022

Mary McCarthy, New York, 1956 (printed 2000)

David Moore

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.

Mary Hassall (née Rouse), c. 1850

Portrait, pencil, pastel and watercolour on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Pamela Glasson 2009
Collected by Leila Haigh (nee Rouse)

Mary Windeyer on the verandah at Tomago, NSW

Mary Windeyer on the verandah at Tomago, NSW, c. 1880s

Portrait, glass plate negative

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Windeyer family 2012

Study for painting commission portrait of Fiona Stanley

Study for painting commission portrait of Fiona Stanley, 2010

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Commissioned 2011

Fiona Stanley, 2011

Commissioned 2011

Portrait of Elizabeth Jolley, 2003

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on cabinet card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Commissioned with funds from the Basil Bressler Bequest 2003

Lady Hay, 1887

Freeman Brothers

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Dame Mary Gilmore, c. 1938

Lyall Trindall

Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2001

Princess Mary

Portrait story

Artist Jiawei Shen describes the symbolism in his portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark.

Study for commissioned portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (full-length study)

Study for commissioned portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (full-length study), 2005

Commissioned with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy 2005

Portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark

Portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, 2005

Commissioned with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy 2005

Study for commissioned portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (profile head study), 2005

Commissioned with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy 2005

Study for commissioned portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (full-length study), 2005

Portrait, black pastel on brown paper

Commissioned with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy 2005

Mary Chomley, 1909

Violet Teague

Purchased with the assistance of funds provided by Jillian Broadbent AC 2021

Larry Sitsky, 1971

Sister Mary Brady

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2010

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Larry Sitsky and Magda Sitsky 2010

The Saint and the merchant

Emanuel Solomon gave shelter to the Sisters of St Joseph upon the excommunication of St Mary MacKillop.

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.

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.

The painter and the princess

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2006

Michael Desmond interviews Ralph Heimans about his portrait of Crown Princess Mary of Denmark.

Aborigines, the last of the race, Tasmania

Aborigines, the last of the race, Tasmania, c. 1866

Henry Frith

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2006

Dr HV Evatt, Albert Namatjira and Dame Mary Gilmore having a meal

Dr HV Evatt, Albert Namatjira and Dame Mary Gilmore having a meal, c. 1950s

Magazine article by Mette Skougaard and Thomas Lyngby, 2018

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2008

Portrait of HRH Crown Princess Mary, 2006 by Ralph Heimans

Dane reign

Mette Skougaard and Thomas Lyngby bring eloquent context to Ralph Heimans’ portraits of Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark.

Aborigines at Oyster Cove, Tasmania, 1858 (printed 1890s)

Francis Nixon

Portrait, glass plate negative

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Sir Charles Court and Richard Court, 2006-2007

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

Commissioned with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2006

Painting writing

Dr Sarah Engledow explores the portraits of writers held in the National Portrait Gallery's collection.

Private virtues public lives

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Family affections are preserved in a fine selection of intimate portraits.

Fits of delicacy and despair

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2009

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

Ruby, Norman, Pearl, Percy, Reg, Bill Dyson and Mary in Creswick garden

Ruby, Norman, Pearl, Percy, Reg, Bill Dyson and Mary in Creswick garden, c. 1899

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Melodrama..., c. 1900

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Martha Mary Robertson, 1866

Portrait, albumen photograph on carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Malcolm Robertson in memory of William Thomas Robertson 2018
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

William Robertson and Martha Mary Robertson

William Robertson and Martha Mary Robertson, 1863

William Edward Kilburn

Portrait, carte de visite photograph on card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Malcolm Robertson in memory of William Thomas Robertson 2018. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Jeremiah Ware, c. 1854

Robert Dowling

Portrait, oil on board

Purchased with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy and Rosalind Blair Murphy 2014

Fanny E. Lee

Fanny Lee (1832–1905) was the only daughter of colonial landowner John Richard Tindale and his wife Mary (whose portraits by Maurice Felton are displayed nearby).

1 portrait in the collection

Martha Mary Robertson with her child William St Leonards Robertson

Martha Mary Robertson with her child William St Leonards Robertson, c. 1865

Portrait, ambrotype, hand coloured

Gift of Fiona Turner (née Robertson) and John Robertson 2011. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary (future Queen Elizabeth II)

Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary (future Queen Elizabeth II), 1942-1943

Charles Wheeler

Portrait, coloured chalk on artist board

Purchased 2019

Jeremiah Ware

Portrait, eight carte de visites, hand coloured, contained in a red leather presentation case

Jeremiah Ware (1792–1878) arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1822 with his wife, Mary (née Brooks, c.

1 portrait in the collection

William and Martha Mary Robertson and their children [William St Leonards, Eliza, John, William St Leonards on a horse, Beatrice and Ida]

William and Martha Mary Robertson and their children [William St Leonards, Eliza, John, William St Leonards on a horse, Beatrice and Ida], 1860s-1870s

Various

Gift of Malcolm Robertson in memory of William Thomas Robertson 2018. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Fanny Eleanor Lee, c 1855

Joseph Backler

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Courtesy of the Tait family

Keith Laught, 1951

Geoffrey Shedley

December 2005 - February 2006

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

Portrait 18

Magazine

This issue of Portrait Magazine features Daddy Cool, HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, the exhibition Glossy 2, Aldo Giurgola, Fiona Wood and more.

Melbourne Spurr

Melbourne Spurr, born in Decorah, Iowa, arrived in Hollywood around 1917.

2 portraits in the collection

William John Pickett Bedford

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright

William John Pickett Bedford (1805–1869) was the eldest of three children of Anglican clergyman, William Bedford (1781–1852), and his wife, Eleanor, and came to Van Diemen’s Land with his family in 1823 following the appointment of his father to a chaplaincy in the colony.

1 portrait in the collection

Reverend William Bedford junior, c. 1846

Portrait, watercolour on paper

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

Rudolph Buchner

Support your Portrait Gallery

Little is known of Rudolph Buchner, a Sydney photographer whose parents lived in Manly.

2 portraits in the collection

Mortality

More about In the flesh

In Western religious art a Pietà, also called a ‘lamentation’, is an image of the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Christ.

Honour board

The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges and thanks all its supporters.

Marianne Egan

Portrait, inkjet print on paper

Mary Anne Egan (also Marianne or Marian, née Cheers, 1818–1857), was born in Sydney, the daughter of ex-convicts.

1 portrait in the collection

Lan Wang, Xini, Jiawei Shen and Billy, 2010

Greg Weight

Purchased 2012

King George V

Previous exhibition, 2002

George Frederick Ernest Albert, The Duke of Cornwall and York and later King George V (1865-1936), was the son of Edward VII, the man for whom the Edwardian era was named.

4 portraits in the collection

Angela Belgiorno-Zegna, 2001 by Salvatore Zofrea

Intimate Portraits

Intimate Portraits is an exhibition of paintings, drawings and prints that explore the less public side of portraiture

Shen Jiawei

Explore The Popular Pet Show

Shen Jiawei was born in China. During the Cultural Revolution he laboured in the Great Northern Wilderness, but even as he worked there, he gained recognition as an artist.

Favourite portraits

National Portrait Gallery staff introduce their favourite portraits from the exhibition.

Kiffy Rubbo

Portrait Sculpture in Australia

Kiffy Rubbo (1944-1980) was director of the Ewing and George Paton Gallery at the University of Melbourne from 1973 to 1980.

1 portrait in the collection

Decorative portrait – Len Lye, c.1925 by Rayner Hoff (1894-1937)

Presence and Absence

Previous exhibition, 2003

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

A Tribute to William Dobell

Previous exhibition, 1999

Adapted from A Tribute to William Dobell an exhibition presented by the Australian National University's Drill Hall Gallery in association with the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, The National Gallery of Australia, and the Australian War Memorial. Dobell is of course, celebrated for his achievements in portraiture, winning the Archibald prize (1943, 1948 and 1959), the Wynne Prize (1948), and representing Australia at the 1954 Venice Biennale. Curator Mary Eagle concludes her essay in the catalogue of the exhibition thus, "Overall I see a dissonance in Dobell’s art and life

Schulim Krimper

Schulim Krimper (1893-1971), furniture designer and cabinetmaker, was born in the Austro-Hungarian province of Bukovina.

1 portrait in the collection

Sarah Tuckfield

Sarah Tuckfield neé Gilbart (c. 1808–1854), was the daughter of a Cornish farmer.

1 portrait in the collection

John Tindale

John Tindale was born in Warwickshire in 1809 and came to Sydney in 1820 to join his father, a convict who had been transported to NSW in 1812 and who received a free pardon in 1816.

1 portrait in the collection

Marcia Hines

Marcia Hines (b. 1953) sang in church choirs while growing up in Boston, Massachusetts and had her first solo singing engagement at the age of seven.

1 portrait in the collection

Schulim Krimper, 1968

Mark Strizic

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2004

Joshua Smith

Joshua Smith studied sculpture with Rayner Hoff and took classes in drawing and painting at Julian Ashton's Sydney Art School.

5 portraits in the collection

Ben Baker

Born in Adelaide and raised in Darwin, Ben Baker currently resides in New York City and works internationally.

1 portrait in the collection

Lowe Kong Meng

Lowe Kong Meng (1831–1888), merchant, was born and grew up in the British colony of Penang and came to Melbourne in 1853.

1 portrait in the collection

Madame Praeger

Previous exhibition, 2006

Laura Praeger (née Blundell) was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and was about twelve years old when her father brought his family to Australia, settling in Queensland.

1 portrait in the collection

Portraits for Posterity

Drawn from some of the many donations made to the Gallery's collection, the exhibition Portraits for Posterity pays homage both to the remarkable (and varied) group of Australians who are portrayed in the portraits and the generosity of the many donors who have presented them to the Gallery.

Terry Snow and China, 2017

Jude Rae

Ludwig Lang after Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

Commissioned with funds provided by Dr Justin Garrick and Ms Dharini Ganesan Rasu, Mr Dino Nikias & Mrs Dimitra Nikias, Mr Jim Windeyer, Ms Claudia Hyles, Mrs Sotiria Liangis OAM and Mr John Liangis, Justice Mary Finn, Mr Bill Farmer AO and Mrs Elaine Farmer, Mr Tim Efkarpidis, Mr Bob Nattey and Mrs Charlotte Nattey, Ms Jennifer Bott AO, Mr Keith Bradley, Dr Sam Whittle and Mrs Heather Whittle 2017

Lowe Kong Meng, c. 1887

Portrait, tinted lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

A charming prospect

Nearest & Dearest

Family fortunes

Lt. A.R.Cutler VC, 1943

Dora Toovey

Portrait, oil on cedar panel

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Cutler family 2017
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Portrait of George Selth Coppin, c. 1895-1899

Tom Roberts

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds donated by Mary Isabel Murphy 2004

The God-shaped hole

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2010

Exploring the photographs of Martin Schoeller, Michael Desmond delves into the uneasy pact that exists between celebrity and the camera.

Rev. Fred Nile, Festival of Light, Sydney

Rev. Fred Nile, Festival of Light, Sydney, 1981

John Williams

Portrait, montage of gelatin silver photographs

Collection: National Portrait Galley
Purchased 1999

Julian Smith

Portrait, inkjet print on paper

Julian Smith, surgeon and photographer, came to Australia with his family from England at the age of three.

2 portraits in the collection

Jiawei Shen, 2006

Greg Weight

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

The Surgeon (Dr Julian Smith), 1934

Harold Cazneaux

A Portrait of Colonial Australia

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Bungaree, late chief of the Broken Bay tribe, Sydney

Heads of the People

Previous exhibition, 2000

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

John Perceval, 1985

Rick Amor

Portrait, black conte on paper

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

John Perceval, 1985

Rick Amor

Portrait, black conte on paper

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

Li Cunxin AO

Portrait, pencil on paper

Li Cunxin AO (b. 1961) is the artistic director of the Queensland Ballet.

1 portrait in the collection

Maritime disaster leaves poignant picture

Devotion

Absence rends the heart asunder

Peter Thomson, c. 1960

Louis Kahan AO

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mary Thomson 2017

Sketch of Clifton Pugh painting John Perceval

John Perceval AO

John Perceval AO (1923-2000) was a painter and ceramic artist. Early on, along with Sidney Nolan, Arthur Boyd and Albert Tucker, he was part of a loose group of largely self-taught Australian artists, now known as the Angry Penguins, who rebelled against the conservatism of the art establishment.

10 portraits in the collection

Julia Swan

Harriet and Julia Swan were daughters of the successful Hobart merchant John Swan (1796–1858), who emigrated to Van Diemen’s Land in 1823 with his wife and first four daughters.

1 portrait in the collection

Harriet Swan

Harriet and Julia Swan were daughters of the successful Hobart merchant John Swan (1796–1858), who emigrated to Van Diemen’s Land in 1823 with his wife and first four daughters.

1 portrait in the collection

Bernard Fanning

Bernard Fanning (b. 1969) is the frontman of Queensland band Powderfinger.

1 portrait in the collection

Sarah and Ann Jacob, c. 1866

Townsend Duryea

Purchased 2018

Robin Sellick

Robin Sellick (b. 1967), photographer, is well known for his distinctive portraits of Australian actors, musicians, politicians and athletes.

17 portraits in the collection

Rayner Hoff, 1924

Harold Cazneaux

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on cabinet card

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

Sir John Hay, 1887

Freeman Brothers

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Fay Bottrell, 1981

David Campbell

Portrait, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

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

John Perceval, 1999

Thomas de Kessler

Portrait, ink, coloured pencil, gouache, crayon and fibre-tipped pen on single mount board with gold coloured ink border

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Thomas de Kessler 2001

Prue Acton, 2012

David Roberts

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Duke of Cornwall and York (later King George V)

Duke of Cornwall and York (later King George V), 1903

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Peter Roberts 2015

Duke of Cornwall and York (later King George V), 1903

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Peter Roberts 2015

Elizabeth Walford, c. 1873

Portrait, pastel on photographic image on paper on canvas

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

William Walford, c. 1873

Portrait, pastel on photographic image on paper on canvas

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

Jane Windeyer

Jane Windeyer (1865–1950) was the second eldest daughter of politician and judge Sir William Charles Windeyer (1834–1897) and his wife, Mary (née Bolton, 1837–1912), a leading campaigner for women’s rights.

2 portraits in the collection

William St Leonards Robertson and the Oxford boat race crew

William St Leonards Robertson and the Oxford boat race crew, early 1880s

Hills & Saunders

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Malcolm Robertson in memory of William Thomas Robertson 2018
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Therese Desmond

Therese Desmond (1902–1961), radio and stage actress, was born Mary Long in London and came to Australia as a teenaged orphan at the end of World War 1.

1 portrait in the collection

Patrick Francis Moran

Patrick Francis Moran (1830-1911), orphaned at 11, was sent from his native Ireland to Rome, where a relative was rector of the Irish College.

2 portraits in the collection

May Wirth, c. 1921

Daguerre Studios

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Li Cunxin, 2018

Jun Chen

Commissioned with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2018

Charles Chauvel

Charles Chauvel (1897-1959), actor and film-maker, worked on the sets of Snowy Baker films as a young man, and followed the great action hero to Hollywood in 1921.

1 portrait in the collection

Richard Windeyer

Richard Windeyer (1806-1847), journalist, barrister and politician, was the eldest of the ten children born to Charles Windeyer and his wife Ann Mary and remained in England when the rest of his family went to New South Wales.

3 portraits in the collection

Arthur Triggs

Arthur Triggs (1868-1936), pastoralist and collector, is sometimes referred to as the 'Kidman of the wool industry'.

1 portrait in the collection

Sidney Kidman and Arthur Triggs, c. 1914

Falk Studios

Purchased with funds provided by The Ian Potter Foundation 2007

Alfred George Stephens

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

1 portrait in the collection

William St Leonards Robertson, c. 1865

Portrait, ambrotype, hand coloured

Gift of Fiona Turner (née Robertson) and John Robertson 2011. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rayner Hoff

George Rayner Hoff (1894-1937), sculptor, was born in England and trained at the Royal College of Art, London.

2 portraits in the collection

Jane Windeyer, n.d.

Madame Praeger

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Windeyer family 2012

HV (Doc) Evatt, 1935

Arnold Shore

Gift of Elizabeth Evatt and Penelope Seidler 1998. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

George Lambert

Portrait, watercolour on paper

George Lambert (1873–1930), artist, was born in St Petersburg and lived in Germany and England before coming to Australia with his family at the age of fourteen.

7 portraits in the collection

Therese Desmond, 1919-1920

James Burnside

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Madeleine Howell 2013

Jiawei Shen

Jiawei Shen (b. 1948), artist, was born in China in 1948 and began to gain recognition as a painter during the Cultural Revolution.

13 portraits in the collection

Elizabeth Walford

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

1 portrait in the collection

Dr Brenda Niall AO

Brenda Niall AO (b. 1930), writer, academic and reviewer, is one of Australia's foremost biographers.

1 portrait in the collection

2013-14 Acquisition Fund

This 1910 portrait of Elizabeth Sarah (Lillie) Roberts by Tom Roberts was brought into the Gallery's collection with the assistance of the Acquisition Fund in 2013.

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

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

Sir William Dargie CBE

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

Johann Zoffany

Johann Zoffany, painter of portraits and conversation pieces, grew up in the court of the Prince von Thurn und Taxis in Germany, where his father was employed.

1 portrait in the collection

2012-13 Acquisition Fund

The Circle of Friends Acquisition Fund for 2012 was dedicated to purchasing a portrait of David Malouf by Rick Amor.

Charles Haddon Chambers

Charles Haddon Chambers (1860-1921), playwright and dramatist, grew up in Sydney.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir John Hay

Sir John Hay (1816-1892), pastoralist and politician, graduated in law in his native Scotland before emigrating to New South Wales with his new wife, Mary, in 1838.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Bock

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

5 portraits in the collection

2014-15 Acquisition Fund

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Kristin Headlam's portrait of Chris Wallace-Crabbe was acquired with the support of the Circle of Friends in 2014.

John Richard Tindale, 1841

Maurice Felton

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Nancy Menetrey

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, sepia toned on cardboard

Nancy Menetrey (née Wilkinson) was born in Sydney in 1924. After serving with the Australian Women's Land Army, formed during the Second World War to address labour shortages in the agricultural sector, she travelled overseas in the early 1950s, living and working in London for a number of years.

1 portrait in the collection

David Low, 1917

Rudolph Buchner

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

A G Stephens, c. 1910 (printed later)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Richard Fitzgerald

Photographic Portraits from 19th Century Australia

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

Thomas Sutcliffe Mort and his wife Theresa

Husbands and Wives

Previous exhibition, 2010

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

L. Gordon Darling AC CMG, 2006

Purchased with the assistance of the Mundango Charitable Trust and Claudia Hyles 2006

Supporters

$5,000 - $9,999

Honour board

William Charles Windeyer, 1850s

Portrait, daguerreotype

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Windeyer family 2009

2022 Annual Appeal

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

Portrait of Harriet Swan, c. 1842

Portrait, watercolour on ivory

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG and Marilyn Darling AC 2013

Portrait of Julia Swan, c. 1842

Portrait, watercolour on ivory

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG and Marilyn Darling AC 2013

Neil Armfield, 2010

Adam Cullen

Magazine article by David Solkin, 2019

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Commissioned 2010

Thomas Gainsborough, c.1758-59 by Thomas Gainsborough

Keep it in the family

David Solkin ponders the provocations and inspirations of the enigmatic Thomas Gainsborough.

Right Rev Dr Lawrence Bonaventure Sheil OSF

Right Rev Dr Lawrence Bonaventure Sheil OSF, c. 1872

Bardwell's Royal Studio

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

May Emmeline Wirth

Self Portraits in Australia

May Emmeline Wirth (1894–1978), circus performer, was once described as the ‘greatest lady bareback rider of all time’.

1 portrait 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

Max Dupain

The Vintage Years

Previous exhibition, 2003

During his long and distinguished career Max Dupain took thousands of photographs of people

Emile Sherman

Portrait, type C photograph on paper

Emile Sherman (b. 1972), film producer, graduated from the University of New South Wales before beginning his career with a documentary about his great-great-uncle Chatzkel, a Lithuanian Jew who lived through both world wars and the Bolshevik revolution.

2 portraits in the collection

Marcia Hines, c. 1981

Lewis Morley

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

Marilyn Ball, Albatross, 2018 (detail) by Linde Ivimey

So Fine

Contemporary women artists make Australian history

Previous exhibition, 2018

This exhibition features new works from ten women artists reinterpreting and reimagining elements of Australian history, enriching the contemporary narrative around Australia’s history and biography, reflecting the tradition of storytelling in our country.

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright (1794-1847) is one of the most intriguing and talented figures in colonial Australian art.

4 portraits in the collection

Li Cunxin, 2017–2018

by Jun Chen

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2019

Commissioned with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2018

Lady Jane Grey, c.1590-1600 (also known as The ‘Streatham’ portrait) Artist unknown

The Royal she

Traversing paint and pixels, Inga Walton examines portraits of select women in Tudors to Windsors: British Royal Portraits.

Mr John Eason, 1838

W. B. Gould

Previous exhibition, 2006

Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2013

Australian Visit

The exhibition will include works of art from the NPG Canberra's permanent collection with some inward loans and aims to highlight the achievements of notable Australians.

William Walford

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2006

1 portrait in the collection

Giving and getting

The exhibition Portraits for Posterity celebrates gifts to the Gallery, of purchases made with donated funds, and testifies to the generosity and community spirit of Australians.

Making Portraits

Five Years of National Portrait Gallery Commissions

Previous exhibition, 2004

The considered matching of artist to subject has produced an amazing collection of unique and original works in the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery

Before hand

Hosting a touring exhibition

How is it done? How do artists capture someone’s presence and personality? What is the nature of this relationship? What does it feel like to be a sitter for a portrait in the national collection?

2015-17 Acquisition Fund

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

From 2015 to 2017 the Acquisition Fund was focussed on Reg Richardson AM by Mitch Cairns, a finalist in the Archibald Prize 2014, and a great example of minimalist portraiture.

Uncommon Australians

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.

The spirit of the gift

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2003

Former NPG Director, Andrew Sayers celebrates the support given to the Gallery by Gordon and Marilyn Darling.

Arnold Shore

Arnold Shore, a lifelong inhabitant of Melbourne, was apprenticed to a stained glass and leadlight company called Brooks, Robinson soon after leaving school at the age of twelve.

2 portraits in the collection

George Brown

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

George Brown (1835-1917), clergyman, established numerous Methodist missions in the Pacific from the late 1880s.

1 portrait in the collection

William St. Leonards Robertson, c. 1869

Portrait, albumen paper carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Malcolm Robertson in memory of William Thomas Robertson 2018
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

First Ladies

Significant Australian Women 1913–2013

Previous exhibition, 2013

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

2021 Annual Appeal

In 2021 the Annual Appeal was focussed on Peter Brew-Bevan's portraits of athletes Turia Pitt, Leisel Jones OAM and Ellie Cole OAM.

Catholic clergymen from the Diocese of Adelaide

Catholic clergymen from the Diocese of Adelaide, c. 1862

Stephen Edward Nixon

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Purchased 2018

Crikey!

Robin Sellick captured a rare moment of quietude from the late conservation star Steve Irwin.

Hot Scots

Magazine article by Christopher Baker, 2013

James Holloway describes the first portraits you encounter when entering the Scottish National 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.

William Shakespeare, c. 1600-1610 associated with John Taylor

Selected images

Magazine article by Djon Mundine OAM, 2017

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

Big shots

Djon Mundine OAM brings poignant memory and context to Martin van der Wal’s 1986 portrait photographs of storied Aboriginal artists.

Little women

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2019

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

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.

Study for Aunty Mary King, 2010 by Mathew Lynn

The animating signature

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2019

Joanna Gilmore delights in the affecting drawings of Mathew Lynn.

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.

Louise Whelan

Finalist interviews

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

Goollabal (Rainbow Serpent), 2018 by Shirley Purdie

Memories

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

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

Blue Mountain, Owner, Trainer, Jockey, James Scobie

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.

Annual Appeal

Listed by year

Honour board

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.

Herra Pahlasari

by Aminudin TH Siregar

Artist essays

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

The artist and her family, c. 1854 by Martha Berkeley

Presence and absence

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2018

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

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.

Out of the shadows

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

Joanna Gilmour profiles the life and times of the shutter sisters May and Mina Moore.

Vintage Max

Magazine article by Gael Newton, 2003

Gael Newton delves into the life and art of renowned Australian photographer, Max Dupain.

Talking heads

About Face article

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

Alexander Pearce
executed for murder
July 19th 1824

Public hanging

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2008

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

Be bold

Magazine article by Katherine Russell, 2007

The name of Florence Broadhurst, one of Australia’s most significant wallpaper and textile designers, is now firmly cemented in the canon of Australian art and design.

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.

The world of Thea Proctor

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

The world of Thea Proctor was the National Portrait Gallery's second exhibition to follow the life of a single person, following Rarely Everage: The lives of Barry Humphries.

Seduce, Amuse, Entertain

NPPP 2007 exhibition essay

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2007

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

Seduce Amuse Entertain

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

The fat of the land

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

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

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.

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.

Speed demon

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

Scott Redford discusses his dynamic portrait commission of motorcycling champion and 2008 Young Australian of the Year Casey Stoner.

Vanity fair

Magazine article by Ashleigh Wadman, 2012

Ashleigh Wadman rediscovers the Australian characters represented with a kindly touch by the British portrait artist Leslie Ward for the society magazine Vanity Fair.

Mary (or Diana) Croker, mat woman, Colchester, 1823 by John Dempsey

Unknown drawer

Magazine article by Dr David Hansen, 2017

Dempsey’s People curator David Hansen chronicles a research tale replete with serendipity, adventure and Tasmanian tigers.

Suave

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2010

Charles Haddon Chambers the Australian-born playboy playwright settled permanently in London in 1880 but never lost his Australian stance when satirising the English.

Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose, 1885-86 by
John Singer Sargent

A feast of friends

Magazine article by Richard Ormond, 2015

John Singer Sargent: a painter at the vanguard of contemporary movements in music, literature and theatre.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Honour board

The Multifarious Career of George Selth Coppin

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2004

George Selth Coppin (1819-1906) comedian, impresario and entrepreneur, was a driving force of the early Australian theatre.

Doodles of the Diva

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2010

Three tiny sketches of Dame Nellie Melba in the NPG collection were created by the artist who was to go on to paint the most imposing representation of the singer: Rupert Bunny.

Pierre de Rigaud de Vaudreuil de Cavagnial, Marquis de Vaudreuil, ca.1753-55

Canadian identities

Magazine article by Lilly Koltun, 2004

An exploration of national identity in the Canadian context drawn from the symposium Face to Face at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in 2004.

Studio portrait of servicewoman Lance Corporal Kathleen Jean Mary (Kath) Walker, c.1942

Past present

Magazine article by Krysia Kitch, 2016

Krysia Kitch celebrates Oodgeroo Noonuccal.

The Window Seat, 1907 by Frances Hodgkins

Kiwi magpie

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2018

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

Dr Edward MacMahon, 1959 by William Dobell

Bill and Ted's excellent portrait.

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2016

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

Take thy face hence

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

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

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.

20 20

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2017

Sarah Engledow picks some favourites from a decade of the National Photographic Portrait Prize.

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

Great Scots

Magazine article by Diana O'Neil, 2017

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

The life of Bryant

Magazine article by Tenille Hands, 2018

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

Women make history

Magazine article by Jennifer Higgie, 2022

Jennifer Higgie uncovers the intriguing stories behind portraits of women by women in the National Portrait Gallery’s collection.

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.

Earth to earth

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

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

Getting a head

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2015

Alexandra Roginski gets a feel for phrenology’s fundamentals.

Madame Sibly, Phrenologist and Mesmerist

Sibly irresistible

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2019

Alexandra Roginski reveals a forceful feminist figure in the colonial period’s slippery science, phrenology.

Woman with Fair Hair and Pink Cardigan, 1949 by John Perceval.

The family scene

Magazine article, 2016

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

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.

Waterfall in Australia, c. 1830 by Augustus Earle

Augustus serendipitous

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2016

The London-born son of an American painter, Augustus Earle ended up in Australia by accident in January 1825.

History

About us

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

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.

Louise Lovely feeding gulls in a park, 1969 Unknown photographer

Jewelled nights

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2017

Anne Sanders celebrates the cinematic union of two pioneering australian women.

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

Prima facie

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

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

Material culture

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2018

The Rajah Quilt’s narrative promptings are as intriguing as the textile is intricate.

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.

Nicholas Harding: 28 Portraits

Exhibition essay