Search / sidney myer

Portrait, cast bronze on wooden base

Sidney Myer (1878-1934), retail magnate and philanthropist, arrived in Melbourne in 1898 as a penniless Russian immigrant named Simca Baevski.

1 portrait in the collection

Sidney Myer, 1936

Paul Montford

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

Four from the 30s

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2003

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

Kenneth Baillieu Myer DSC AC

Kenneth Baillieu Myer DSC AC (1921- 1992) was a businessman and philanthropist.

1 portrait in the collection

Study for a portrait of Dame Merlyn Myer DBE

Dame Margery Merlyn Baillieu Myer DBE

Portrait, cast bronze medallion on wood plaque

Dame Margery Merlyn Baillieu Myer DBE (1900–1982), philanthropist and fundraiser, was the daughter of a hotelier, George Baillieu.

1 portrait in the collection

Kenneth Myer DSC AC, 1985

Michael Meszaros

Gift of Dr Ray Marginson AM 2001

Sidney Nolan

Sir Sidney Nolan AC OM CBE (1917–1992) was one of the most original and inventive Australian artists of the postwar decades, and one of few Australian artists to achieve an international reputation in the twentieth century.

7 portraits in the collection

Sir Sidney Kidman

Portrait, oil on composition board

Sir Sidney Kidman, pastoralist (1857-1935), is Australia's 'cattle king'.

2 portraits in the collection

Sidney Nolan

In their own words

Recorded 1962

Self portrait, 1988

Sidney Nolan

Gift of Hon RL Hunter KC 2006. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Sidney Riley Studios

Sidney Riley Studios operated concurrently at several Sydney locations (Balmain, Rozelle, Pitt St., Sydney, Marrickville & Chatswood), and in Brisbane, between 1911 and 1946.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Sidney Nolan, c. 1980s

Max Dupain OBE

Gift of Danina Dupain Anderson 2021. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Study for a portrait of Dame Merlyn Myer DBE, 1960s

Portrait, oil on masonite

Gift of the Estate of Marion Orme Page 2016

Sidney Nolan, Western Australia, 1962 (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.

Sidney Nolan, 1964

Axel Poignant

Portrait, charcoal heightened with white chalk on paper

Purchased 2003

Sir Sidney Kidman, 1932

Samuel Woolf

Purchased 2009

Sidney Nolan, 1982

Albert Tucker

Portrait, synthetic polymer paint on canvas board

Purchased with funds provided by Ross Adler AC 2022

Self Creation

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2006

Former National Portrait Gallery Director, Andrew Sayers recalls meeting iconic Australian artist Sidney Nolan.

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’.

Me Myself I

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2001

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

Sidney Kidman and Arthur Triggs, c. 1914

Falk Studios

Purchased with funds provided by The Ian Potter Foundation 2007

Sidney Nolan and Patrick White, Adelaide Arts Festival

Sidney Nolan and Patrick White, Adelaide Arts Festival, c. 1964 (printed 2015)

Robert McFarlane

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

Through blue eyes

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

A.J. Fischer, 1920s

Sidney Riley Studios

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Cultural kaleidoscope

The complex connections between four creative Australians; Patrick White, Sidney Nolan, Robert Helpmann and Peter Sculthorpe.

Sidney Nolan and Robert Helpmann at Bonython Gallery, Adelaide Arts Festival

Sidney Nolan and Robert Helpmann at Bonython Gallery, Adelaide Arts Festival, c. 1964 (printed 2015)

Robert McFarlane

Archived media releases 2015

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

Mr Sidney Myer AM appointed inaugural President of the National Portrait Gallery’s Foundation

12 March 2015

Dr Helen Nugent AO, Chairman, National Portrait Gallery Board announced today the appointment of Mr Sidney Myer AM as the inaugural President of the newly established National Portrait Gallery Foundation.

Neilma Gantner, c. 1990

William Kelly OAM

Portrait, charcoal on paper

Purchased 2022

Brian Quinn, Coles Myer,

Joe Greenberg

Portrait, watercolour, crayon, coloured pencil, fibre-tipped pen and gouache on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001

Neilma B. Gantner

Support your Portrait Gallery

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

Honour board

The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges and thanks all its supporters.

Nolan Heads

Previous exhibition, 2001

Nolan Heads will focus on the portraiture of one of Australia's most original painters and one of the few to have achieved an international reputation

Portrait of William Manning, c. 1821

Henry Bone

Portrait, enamel on copper plate

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2017

Portrait 1

September - November 2001

Magazine

The first edition of Portrait Magazine features an article on Sidney Nolan's portraiture by former Gallery Director, Andrew Sayers.

Portrait 20

June - August 2006

Magazine

This issue of Portrait Magazine features Dame Nellie Melba and Frances Alda, Leigh Bowery, Karin Catt, Sidney Nolan and more.

Howard Matthews

Part of the Melbourne intellectual avant-garde of the 1940s, Howard Matthews was a brilliant student.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Kenneth Coles, c. 1979

Gift of Coles Myer Ltd 2002. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Sir Edgar Coles, c. 1970

Gift of Coles Myer Ltd 2002. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Sir Norman Coles, n.d.

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on paper laid on photography studio backing board

Gift of Coles Myer Ltd 2002. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait 32

June - August 2009

Magazine

This issue features Vanity Fair, Nancy Bird Walton, William Barak, Sidney Kidman, Benjamin Duterrau's portraits of the Indigenous peoples of Tasmania, and more.

Sid Myer AM in front of Helena Rubinstein in a red brocade Balenciaga gown 1957 by Graham Sutherland. Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC, Tim Fairfax AC and the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2015.

Foundation

Our team

Chaired by Sid Myer AM, the National Portrait Gallery Foundation aims to grow a dynamic culture of giving such that donations and support may sustain ambitious Gallery projects into the future.

Florence Cardell-Oliver, n.d.

Broothorn Studios

Gift of Chris Nielsen 2016

Top of the pops to golden guitars

The Seekers, John Farnham and Lee Kernaghan

Supporters

$5,000 - $9,999

David Campbell

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2003

David Campbell (1952–1984) decided to become an artist while a student at Erina High on the New South Wales Central Coast.

3 portraits in the collection

The Fairfax Gift

This article examines the portraits gifted to the National Portrait Gallery by Fairfax Holdings in 2003.

Sir George Coles, 1935

W B McInnes

Archived media releases 2015

Gift of Coles Myer Ltd 2002. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Foundation members announced

18 May 2015

The newly-established National Portrait Gallery Foundation met for its inaugural meeting last Friday 15 May in Canberra.

In their own words

Audio-guide

Apps

In their own words is an audio-guide with a difference. We let the portraits of these remarkable Australians speak for themselves.

Joy Hester

Joy Hester (1920-1960) was the only female member of the Angry Penguin movement, which included artists Tucker, Sidney Nolan and Arthur Boyd.

1 portrait in the collection

Peter O'Shaughnessy, 1947

Howard Matthews

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

Paul Montford

Paul Montford came to Australia from England in 1921, attracted by the light, which he believed to be conducive to monumental sculpture.

2 portraits in the collection

Judith Durham AO

The Seekers formed in Melbourne in 1962 when jazz singer Judith Durham met Athol Guy, who was in a folk trio with Bruce Woodley and Keith Potger.

3 portraits in the collection

Livingston Hopkins

Livingston Hopkins, cartoonist, was born in Ohio and fought in the American Civil War before beginning his cartooning career in New York.

3 portraits in the collection

The Seekers, 1993

Rennie Ellis

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis, 2017

Jacqueline Mitelman

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

Rudy Komon

Rudy Komon (1908-1982) was an art dealer and gallery director. After working as a journalist in Czechoslovakia, where he served with the Czech resistance during the war, he emigrated to Sydney and opened an antique store.

3 portraits in the collection

Sir George Coles KT CBE

Sir George Coles CBE (1885–1977) was the founder of the retail concern GJ Coles and Coy.

1 portrait in the collection

Adrian Lawlor

Adrian Lawlor, critic and artist, came to Australia from his native England at the age of about twenty.

2 portraits in the collection

Paul Newton

Paul Newton (b. 1961), is a Sydney-based portrait painter noted for his ability to capture likeness and sensibility.

6 portraits in the collection

Livingston Hopkins, n.d.

an unknown artist

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Bruce Dawe

Bruce Dawe AO (1930-2020), poet and teacher, was born in Fitzroy and worked as a labourer, clerk, sawmill hand, farmhand and postman before joining the RAAF in 1959.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Purves

Portrait, etching on paper

Thomas Purves (1909-1969), known as Tam, founded the Australian Galleries in Smith Street, Collingwood, Melbourne with his wife Anne in 1956.

1 portrait in the collection

Self portrait, 1894

Livingston Hopkins

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

Foundation

Support your Portrait Gallery

The Foundation encourages gifts, donations, bequests and legacies in service of the Gallery's mission.

The Merioola Group, 1940s

Alec Murray

Portrait, synthetic polymer on linen

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

The Seekers reunite 50 years on, 2011

Helen Edwards

Gift of Judith Durham, Athol Guy, Keith Potger and Bruce Woodley 2012. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rudy Komon, c. 1970

Lewis Morley

Portrait, black conte on paper

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

John Perceval, 1985

Rick Amor

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

Self portrait, 1948

Klaus Friedeberger

Gift of Julie Friedeberger 2021

James Mollison, c. 1973 (printed 2004)

Wesley Stacey

Portrait, transparency between mirror substrates in LED lightbox

Gift of James Mollison AO 2004

Tan Le, 2018

John Tsiavis

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

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

Hugh Jackman, 2020

Vincent Fantauzzo

Commissioned with funds provided by the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation and Paul Dainty AM and Donna Dainty 2020

Chairman Sid Myer AM, Hayley Baillie, Tim Bednall, Jillian Broadbent AC, Patrick Corrigan AM, Marilyn Darling AC, Tim Fairfax AC, Penny Fowler AM, John Liangis, Dr Helen Nugent AC and Nigel Satterley AM

Foundation Members

Foundation

Chairman Sid Myer AM, Hayley Baillie, Tim Bednall, Jillian Broadbent AC, Patrick Corrigan AM, Marilyn Darling AC, Tim Fairfax AC, Penny Fowler AM, John Liangis, Dr Helen Nugent AC and Nigel Satterley AM.

Jinx Nolan

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

Jinx Nolan (b. 1941), artist, is the daughter of writer Cynthia Reed and the adopted daughter of Sidney Nolan, whom Reed married in 1948.

1 portrait in the collection

John Perceval, 1999

Thomas de Kessler

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Thomas de Kessler 2001

Tim Burstall, Andamooka (filming of the Last of the Knucklemen)

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

Rennie Ellis

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2006

Dame Helen Blaxland DBE

Portrait, inkjet print and oil on canvas, mounted with inset axe pendant

Dame Helen Blaxland DBE (1907–1989), conservationist and fundraiser, studied at the Julian Ashton School of Art in Sydney.

1 portrait in the collection

What the tree saw: David Foster, 2018

Jacqui Stockdale

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

Inner Worlds

Portraits and Psychology

Previous exhibition, 2011

Portraits of Australia’s pioneering psychologists and artworks by artists fascinated by the subconscious mind.

James Mollison AO

James Mollison AO (1931–2020) was the inaugural director of the National Gallery of Australia.

2 portraits in the collection

Graham Kennedy and the Seekers in Melbourne

Graham Kennedy and the Seekers in Melbourne, c. 1968

Robert Whitaker

Archived media releases 2020

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2007

Announcing.... In their own words

24 November 2020

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

Margaret Seares, 2018

Cherry Hood

Portrait, watercolour on paper

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

Self portrait with Bottlebrush, 1991

Margaret Olley AC

Portrait, oil on board

Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC and the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2021

Margaret Seares, 2018

by Cherry Hood

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

Klaus Friedeberger

Klaus Friedeberger (1922-2019) fled Germany for England at the age of sixteen, and the next year found himself on the Dunera bound for internment in Australia.

3 portraits in the collection

Mirka by Mirka, 2000

Mirka Mora

Purchased with funds provided by the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2021

Play on (A portrait of Neale Daniher), 2021

Michael Peck

Portrait, oil on linen

Commissioned with funds provided by The Calvert-Jones Foundation, The Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation and Dr David Thurin AM and Lisa Thurin 2021

Dr Julie Dowling

Julie Dowling, an artist of Badimaya, Irish and Scottish Catholic heritage, was born in Subiaco, Western Australia and grew up in nearby urban and semi-rural areas.

2 portraits in the collection

Michelle Simmons, 2018

Selina Ou

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

Michelle Simmons, 2018

by Selina Ou

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

Inside Heide’s lives

It's Complicated

Happiness to heartache

Arthur Boyd, 1962

Axel Poignant

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Helena Rubinstein in a red brocade Balenciaga gown

Helena Rubinstein in a red brocade Balenciaga gown, 1957

Graham Sutherland

Portrait, oil on composition board

Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC, Tim Fairfax AC and the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2015

Murray Bail, c. 1990

Jinx Nolan

Gift of an anonymous donor 2021

James Mollison, c. 1973 (printed 2004)

Wesley Stacey

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of James Mollison AO 2004

Wilfred John Peisley

Wilfrid John Peisley, born in Bathurst, won a number of prizes at regional shows before gaining a scholarship to the East Sydney Technical College at the age of seventeen.

1 portrait in the collection

What the tree saw: David Foster, 2018

by Jacqui Stockdale

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

Portrait of Heidi Middleton and Sarah-Jane Clarke (Sass & Bide)

Portrait of Heidi Middleton and Sarah-Jane Clarke (Sass & Bide), 2008

Deborah Paauwe

Commissioned with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2008

James Houston

Scoring first prize in New South Wales for Art in the 1983 HSC was a signal that a talented creative career lay ahead and this has indeed proven the case.

2 portraits in the collection

Heidi Middleton

Heidi 'Bide' Middleton AM (b. 1971) and Sarah-Jane 'Sass' Clarke AM (b.

1 portrait in the collection

Sarah-Jane Clarke AM

Sarah-Jane 'Sass' Clarke AM (b. 1974) and Heidi 'Bide' Middleton AM (b.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Arthur Coles, c. 1971

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

Tan Le, 2018

by John Tsiavis

Portrait, pencil on paper

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

John Perceval, 1985

Rick Amor

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

Icons Syndicate

Lists alphabetically

Ruby Hunter

Ruby Hunter (1955-2010), singer/songwriter, was a Ngarrindjeri/ Kukatha/ Pitjantjatjara woman from South Australia.

1 portrait in the collection

Top of their game

Nobel Laureates

Macfarlane Burnet and Patrick White

Donors

$10,000 - $49,999

Charles Haddon Chambers

Portrait, oil on canvas board

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

1 portrait in the collection

Geoffrey Tozer, 1966

Rollo Thomson

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Estate of Geoffrey Tozer 2012

The Possibilities of Portraiture

Previous exhibition, 1999

What does 'portraiture mean at the end of the 20th century? At the outset of building a national portrait collection it seems an appropriate question to investigate.

Charles Haddon Chambers, 1921

Ralph Barton

Portrait, ink and watercolour on cardboard

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Donald Friend

Donald Friend (1915-1989), painter, writer and diarist, studied at the RAS and Dattilo-Rubbo’s school in Sydney before spending 1935 and 1936 at the Westminster School in London.

2 portraits in the collection

In the mirror: self portrait with Joy Hester, 1939

Albert Tucker

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

Geoffrey Tozer

Geoffrey Tozer (1954-2009), pianist, achieved national fame as a child prodigy in the 1960s.

1 portrait in the collection

Donald Friend, 1987

Greg Weight

Portrait, ink and charcoal on paper

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

Donald Friend at Owl Creek, 1983

Lawrence Daws

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

Caroline Jones, 1978

David Campbell

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

Angus Trumble with Self portrait at easel by Fred Williams

Autumn in Canberra

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

R. M. Williams AO CMG

RM (Reginald Murray) Williams AO CBE (1908-2003), saddlery, boot and clothing manufacturer, miner and author, moved to Adelaide from his birthplace near the Flinders Rangers when he was 10.

1 portrait in the collection

Ethel Marian (Maie) Casey AC

Portraits in the Landscape

Ethel Marian (Maie) Casey AC, Baroness Casey (1892-1983), chatelaine, artist, pilot and author, was born in Melbourne, the daughter of the Surgeon General, Sir Charles Ryan.

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.

National Portrait Gallery and Access2Arts staff presenting on audio description at the Australian Museums and Galleries Association National Conference

Our achievements to date

Disability Inclusion Action Plan 2023–25

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

Before Too Long

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2004

The story behind the creation of the portrait of singer-songwriter Paul Kelly by the artist Jon Campbell.

Welcome home, Captain Bligh

27 March 2015

Archived media releases 2015

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

Icons

Parliament House

Touring exhibition, 2019

When a portrait communicates determination and individuality as boldly as these do, it has the potential to become an iconic image. For the Gallery’s 20th birthday this display brings together a group contemporary photographic portraits of inspiring women and men.

Gail Kelly, 2018

by Paul Newton

Archived media releases 2016

Commissioned with funds provided by Westpac Group and Optus 2018

Equation of a life - a portrait of Professor Derek Denton

Equation of a life – a portrait of Derek Denton

9 September 2016

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

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.

Artists' space

Magazine article by John McDonald, 2007

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

To Look Within

Self Portraits in Australia

Previous exhibition, 2004

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

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.

Philanthropic donations enable otherwise unobtainable acquisition

20 October 2016

Archived media releases 2016

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

Portrait of Kym Bonython/Portrait of Mr Bonython's speedway cap

Somewhere to hang your cap

Magazine article by Beatrice Thompson, 2007

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

The Stories Beneath

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

The Alcoa World Alumina Australia gift.

Portrait of Lady Eyre Williams (Jessie Gibbon)

Chance encounter

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2009

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

Self Portrait in red shirt, 1937 by Arthur Boyd

Arthur as Alyosha?

Magazine article by Patrick McCaughey, 2015

Patrick McCaughey explores a striking Boyd self portrait.

20/20 launch speech

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2011

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

The inner voice

Dr Christopher Chapman, curator of Inner Worlds: Portraits & Psychology looks at Albert Tucker's Heidelberg military hospital portraits.

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.

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.

First-Class Marksman, 1946 by Sidney Nolan

Money for Myth

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2015

Australian character on the market by Jane Raffan.

Wicked but Virtuous

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2008

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

I'm not there

Christopher Chapman looks at some contemporary portraits that explore the construction of identity.

The art of Inner Worlds

Lecture, 7 May 2011

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2010

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

Suave

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

Recollections of a sinologist sitter

Magazine article by Professor Stephen FitzGerald AO, 2016

Professor Stephen Fitzgerald, Australia’s first Ambassador to China, traces the historical course from sino-australian cultural engagement to a maturing Australian identity.

Sandor Ferenczis 50th birthday dinner, Budapest, 1923

Less than six degrees of separation

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2011

Anne Sanders finds connections in Inner Worlds between Hungarian expatriates and the development of psychoanalysis in Australia.

An Australian story

Magazine article by The Hon. Dr Kevin Rudd, 2009

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

Diamond Doll

Magazine article by Karen Vickery, 2016

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

In good company

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2015

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

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.

Getting a head

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2015

Alexandra Roginski gets a feel for phrenology’s fundamentals.

Study in scarlet

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2018

Angus Trumble reflects on the force of nature that was Helena Rubinstein.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2009

Thrown together

Shipmates for years, James Cook and Joseph Banks each kept a journal but neither man shed light on their relationship.

Faces of war

Lecture, 14 May 2011

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

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.

Painting writing

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

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.

Christmas Island