Search / victor child-villiers

Sir Leslie Ward, Vanity Fair Magazine

Victor Albert George Child-Villiers (1845-1915) succeeded his father George Augustus (1808-1859), 6th earl, who had only held the title for three weeks, as 7th earl of Jersey in 1859.

1 portrait in the collection

New South Wales (Earl of Jersey Victor Albert George Child-Villiers), 1890

Portrait, chromolithograph on paper

Gift of Mr Ronald Walker 2001

Victor Smorgon AC

Victor Smorgon AO (1913-2009), industrialist and philanthropist, is the former chairman of Smorgon Consolidated Industries.

3 portraits in the collection

Victor Greenhalgh

Victor Greenhalgh (1900-1983) was a sculptor and teacher who greatly influenced tertiary art education; he was one of the first Victorian sculptors to adopt a modern style.

5 portraits in the collection

Victor Trumper

Victor Trumper (1877-1915), is one of Australia's all-time great cricket batsmen.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Albert Victor Jennings KT CR

Portrait, watercolour, crayon, coloured pencil and gouache on paper

Sir Albert Victor Jennings Kt.cr. (1897-1993) pioneered mass-produced and mass-marketed housing in Australia.

1 portrait in the collection

Victor Smorgon,

Joe Greenberg

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001

Victor Smorgon, 2000

Peter Wegner

Portrait, etching on paper

Gift of the artist 2002

Jacques Etienne Victor Arago

Jacques Etienne Victor Arago (1790-1855), author, artist and explorer, travelled with Louis-Claude de Saulces de Freycinet on his 1817 voyage around the world on the Uranie.

3 portraits in the collection

Victor Richardson, 1920s

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, hand coloured on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2017

Rt Hon. Sir Robert Menzies, c. 1962

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, selenium toned on paper

Portrait, cast bronze

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Lady Bunting in honour of Sir John Bunting and the Menzies Foundation 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Sir Albert Victor Jennings, 1984

Kate Gollings

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

William McMahon, 1973

Portrait, ciment fondue

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Paul and Wendy Greenhalgh 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

John Gorton, 1970

Portrait, terracotta

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Paul and Wendy Greenhalgh 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Harold Holt, 1969

Portrait, cast bronze on granite base

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Paul and Wendy Greenhalgh 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

John Gorton, 1970 (cast 1999)

Magazine article by Gideon Haigh, 2009

Portrait, cast bronze

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Cast 1999 from terracotta donated by Paul and Wendy Greenhalgh 1999

Top shot that

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

Victor Trumper, 1905

George Beldam, Sun Electric Engraving Company

Portrait, photogravure on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2009

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

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

Pierre Langlume after Jacques Etienne Victor Arago

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Jacques Arago, c. 1830s

Nicolas Maurin, Alexandre Sixdeniers

Portrait, engraving on paper

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2009

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

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

Jean Coutant after Jacques Etienne Victor Arago

Portrait, line engraving on paper

Purchased 2015

Victor and Loti Smorgon, 1995 (printed 2001)

Kate Gollings

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, selenium toned on paper

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

The style adopted by an American Civil War general, Ambrose Burnside, from whose name the term ‘sideburn’ originated.

Renae Saxby

Vox pops

This is Cindy Rostron. Her father Victor Rostron's art is on the roof, and we're out around Bulman, in Central Arnhem Land.

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.

Charlotte Dark, 2009

by Michael Miller

Other styles

Style guide

The Barkly, The Victor and The Kinghorne

Pam MacFarlane

Pamela MacFarlane was born in Dunedin, NZ and completed a Master's degree in Zoology at the University of Otago in the 1940s.

1 portrait in the collection

The Christening, 2014

by Sarah Rhodes

1967, 2019

Dave Laslett

Bangardidjan

Renae Saxby

Katie and Jaylen Cornish, 2012

by Morganna Magee

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

King Barak, last of the Yarra Tribe, 1899

Barak, respected elder

Dr Christopher Chapman looks at the life of Wurundjeri elder William Barak through the portrait painted by Victor de Pury in 1899.

Marcia Ella, 2006

Sahlan Hayes

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on resin-coated paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2006

Sudan Peace, Australia, 2017

by Hego

Photographs by Alfred Wertheimer

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

Elvis At 21

Previous exhibition, 2013

Elvis at 21 is a photographic exhibition capturing Elvis’ rise to fame in the year 1956, before security and money built walls between him and his fans.

The Reservoir 2, 2016

by Stephanie Rose Simcox

Dora Byrne

Magazine article by Tamsin Hong, 2016

Dora was the fourth child of Doretta and Stuart Alexander, her father the owner of a farming property near Albury, New South Wales.

1 portrait in the collection

Rev. Victor B. Walls and Mrs. Walls, Trinidad, B.W.I., c.1930

The first nurse

Tamsin Hong recounts the tale of Marion Smith, the only known Australian Indigenous servicewoman of World War One.

Les Enfants du Paradis, 2012

by Tracey Schramm

Jess, Danny and Mia, 2010

by Marzena Wasikowska

Peter Robinson, Lingerie Importer, 2006

by Vasili Vasiliadis

Grounded to earth, 2019

Greg Sheehan

Mastura, 2016

by Brett Canet-Gibson

Sixteen, 2010

by Janet Tavener

Rosita, 2006

by Chris Budgeon

Edith Ellen Williams, c. 1871

Portrait, albumen silver photograph, hand coloured on paper

Gift of Ross and Judy O'Connell 2016

Sir Hartley Williams, c. 1871

Portrait, albumen silver photograph, hand coloured on paper

Gift of Ross and Judy O'Connell 2016

Dad, aged 73, 2019

Natalie Finney

Millicent Preston Stanley Vaughan, c. 1945

Noel Rubie

Gift of Judi Preston-Stanley 2013

David Simpson

Previous exhibition, 2001

David Simpson, photographer, is represented in the Art Gallery of South Australia, his subjects including HM Queen Elizabeth II, Don Bradman, David Gulpilil and Sir Mark and Lady Oliphant.

1 portrait in the collection

The Hon. Edward Gough Whitlam by Martin Wilson

Fuzzy Prime Ministers of Australia

In the one hundred years since Federation, Australia has produced twenty-five Prime Ministers of all shapes, shades and sizes

Frances Saville

Frances Saville (1865-1935), soprano, came to Australia from San Francisco as a small child.

1 portrait in the collection

Let them eat cake, by Zoom

Sarah Vandermark

Sarah

Therese Maher

Employment opportunities

The Gallery

Positions vacant and how to apply for jobs.

Billy Slater

Billy Slater (b. 1983), rugby league footballer, has played for Melbourne Storm since the beginning of his career in 2003.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir William Charles Windeyer, 1892

Tom Roberts

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

Christine (self portrait), 2014

by Christine Arnaldi

That's not my mother, 2018

by Rosa Voss

Becky feeding Hazel, 2012

by Louise Allerton

Robert, 2010

by CJ Taylor

Raphael and his children, 2013

by Ferne Millen

Fiona Stanley AC

Fiona Stanley AC (b. 1946), paediatric epidemiologist, is a passionate advocate for children and young people.

2 portraits in the collection

Duane Ahchoo

Duane Ahchoo (b.c. 1983) is a Bardi man from One Arm Point on the Dampier Peninsula.

1 portrait in the collection

Hana, Bobby and Mica in the lounge room

Lisa Sorgini

Dr G Yunupingu

Magazine article, 2017

Dr G Yunupingu (1970-2017), a man of the Gumatj clan of north-east Arnhem Land, learned to play guitar, keyboard, drums and didgeridoo as a child.

Noel Fraser Hickey, 1957

Nancy Menetrey

Gift of the artist 2021

Fostin outside his mum's, Kings Park, Melbourne, 2015

by Nicola Dracoulis

Portrait, pastel on paper

Sir John Eccles, 1959

Pam MacFarlane

Gift of an anonymous donor 2007

Valentin Shkolny

Valentin Shkolny grew up in his native Ukraine, where he began painting as a child and took his first photograph - of his mother - when he was 12.

1 portrait in the collection

Farewell My Son, 2011

by Dale Neill

Percy Lindsay

Percy Lindsay (1870-1952), artist, was the eldest child of Robert and Jane Lindsay, born, as were his nine siblings, in Creswick, Victoria.

4 portraits in the collection

King George V

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

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

Rev. Fred Nile, Festival of Light, Sydney

Fred Nile MLC

The Rev. Fred Nile MLC (b. 1934) Leader of the Christian Democratic Party was born and raised in King's Cross, Sydney.

1 portrait in the collection

Dee Tang and Desmond Sweeney

Elizabeth Looker

Magazine article by Peter Brew-Bevan, 2004

In Sync

Peter Brew-Bevan discusses two experiences where his plans for his portraits produced surprising results.

Untitled, 2019

Marieka Jacobs

Hermannsburg Potters

The Hermannsburg Potters are a collective of highly respected senior women artists of the Western Arrarnta (Arrernte) community.

1 portrait in the collection

Nelson Illingworth

Previous exhibition, 2006

Nelson Illingworth trained in sculpture in England and worked as a modeller at the Royal Doulton potteries for nine years before moving to Australia.

3 portraits in the collection

Truth and Likeness

This exhibition seeks to explore the nature of portraiture, providing an investigation into the importance of likeness to contemporary portraits.

William Macleod

Portrait, albumen photograph on cabinet card

William Macleod, artist and magazine proprietor, attended the Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts as a young teenager and saw his first illustration published in 1866.

4 portraits in the collection

Clem Hill (member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team)

Clem Hill (member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team), 1896

H Parker Rolfe

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2014

Sarah Tuckfield

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

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of Frank Lowy AC, 2014

Paul Newton

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2016
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Tom Glover

English-born Thomas Ellis Glover moved to New Zealand as a child and by his early twenties was working as a cartoonist, court reporter and journalist.

10 portraits in the collection

Martin Philbey

Martin Philbey (b. 1962) is a Melbourne-based photographer who has amassed an archive of 100,000 images over his twenty-year career.

4 portraits in the collection

Sir Hartley Williams

Sir Hartley Williams (1843–1929), judge, was the third child and second son of Edward Eyre Williams and his wife, Jessie.

1 portrait in the collection

HRH Prince Alfred

Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (1844–1900) was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria.

4 portraits in the collection

Dora Byrne, 1951

Richard von Marientreu

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

Dame Enid Lyons AD GBE

Dame Enid Lyons AD GBE (1897–1981) was the first woman elected to the Federal House of Representatives.

1 portrait in the collection

Nancy Menetrey

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

Clem Hill

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on resin-coated paper

Clem Hill (1877–1945) was one of sixteen children and born into a notable Adelaide sporting family.

1 portrait in the collection

Joshua Ross, 2006

Sahlan Hayes

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2006

Beatrix Potter

Delmar Banner

Previous exhibition, 2011

Indecent exposure

Annette Kellerman

'Diving Venus' and 'the perfect woman' are two of the numerous descriptions applied to Annette Kellerman, who achieved international fame during the early decades of the twentieth century.

Charles William Vane-Stewart, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry

Sir Thomas Lawrence

Joshua Ross

Joshua Ross (b. 1981) excelled at athletics as a child, but didn't take up sprinting in earnest until 2000, inspired by watching the Sydney Olympics on television.

1 portrait in the collection

Kitty Kantilla and Freda Warlapinni at Milikapiti (Snake Bay)

Taracarijimo Freda Warlapinni

Taracarijimo Freda Warlapinni (c. 1928–2004) was a Tiwi woman from Mirrikawuyanga Country on Melville Island.

1 portrait in the collection

Ron Tandberg

Ron Tandberg (1943-2018), cartoonist, was working as a teacher when he contributed his first cartoon to the Education section of the Age in the early 1970s.

1 portrait 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.

Fay Bottrell

Fay Bottrell (b. 1927) textile artist and teacher, collaborated with Wessley Stacey on the book The Artist Craftsman in Australia: Aspects of Sensibility in 1972.

1 portrait in the collection

Betsy Napangardi Lewis

Portrait, fibreglass and resin

Betsy Napangardi Lewis (c. 1940–2008) was born at Kunajarryi, west of Yuendumu, Northern Territory and became a noted Warlpiri artist across the course of her career.

1 portrait in the collection

Jack Lang, life mask, n.d.

Arthur Murch

Purchased 2000

Self Portrait #2, 1947/2007

William Yang, an unknown artist

Portrait, inkjet print, black and purple ink on paper

Purchased 2022

Judith Pungarta Inkamala

Judith Pungarta Inkamala (b. 1947), senior potter, is an Arrernte woman who was born in Hermannsburg, 130 km west of Alice Springs.

3 portraits in the collection

Animation 1 from the series Hereinbefore, 2012

by Laura Moore

Winner, iD2012

Gladys Moncrieff album,

Portrait, 38 page scrap book (19 doublesided pages unbound) featuring photographs and ephemera

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

You are what is most beautiful about me: a self portrait with Kel and Arella, 2007 Del Kathryn Barton

Unplanned arrival leads to blissful adoration

Nearest & Dearest

A mother’s ‘in-loveness’

Ellen Stirling, c. 1828

Thomas Phillips

Purchased with funds provided by the Ian Potter Foundation 2008

Jack Lang, 1970

Adam Martin

Portrait, pencil, chalk and gouache on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Elsie Martin 2000

Jessie Robertson, c. 1849

Thomas Bock

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

Matilda (Ngambri/Ngunnawal), 2019 Brenda L Croft

Observation point

Magazine article by Brenda L Croft, 2022

I have known Dr Aunty Matilda House, Ngambri Elder, Traditional Custodian and Cultural Knowledge Holder, since I was a child.

William 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

Rod Laver,

Ern McQuillan OAM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu

Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (1970–2017), a man of the Gumatj clan of north east Arnhem Land, was born blind but learned to play guitar, keyboard, drums and didgeridoo as a child.

1 portrait in the collection

Reputedly Elizabeth Macarthur, 1785-1790 Unknown

The most material advantages

Devotion

A one-in-a-thousand woman

Reinis Zusters

Recorded 1965

Helen Grieve

Previous exhibition, 2011

Helen Grieve (1931–1981), child actress, was born in Sydney. Her first film role was in The Overlanders (1946), opposite Chips Rafferty.

1 portrait in the collection

Inner Worlds

Portraits and Psychology

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

Hereinbefore

Magazine article by Alistair McGhie, 2013

Alistair McGhie talks with Laura Moore about her winning digital self portrait.

Jeanne Little OAM

Australian entertainer Jeanne Little OAM (1938–2020) was known for her over-the-top personality and flamboyant outfits, greeting everyone with her catchphrase 'Daaahling'.

1 portrait in the collection

Daphne Mayo MBE

Daphne Mayo MBE (1895–1982), sculptor, was born in Sydney and moved to Brisbane as a child.

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of Julia Swan, c. 1842

Portrait, watercolour on ivory

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG and Marilyn Darling AC 2013

Portrait of Harriet Swan, c. 1842

Portrait, watercolour on ivory

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG and Marilyn Darling AC 2013

William Robertson and Martha Mary Robertson

A charming prospect

Nearest & Dearest

Family fortunes

Annette Kellerman smiling, c. 1907 (printed 2003)

H. Walter Barnett

Portrait, modern bromide print on paper from an original negative

Gift of an anonymous donor 2004

Anne Hyde, Duchess of York and King James II

Sir Peter Lely

associated with Nicholas Hilliard

Queen Elizabeth I

Tjayanka Woods

Tjayanka Woods (d. 2014) was a senior Pitjantjatjara artist and cultural custodian.

2 portraits in the collection

Ethel Marian (Maie) Casey AC

Portrait, pencil on paper

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

Self portrait, Paris, 1989

Brett Whiteley

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Jemima Bellette

Portrait, charcoal on paper

George Billett (also Bellett, Bellette and Billet, 1812–1885) was a farmer and landowner, an early settler of Sorell in Tasmania, and the son of two ex-convicts.

1 portrait in the collection

Neilma Gantner, c. 1990

William Kelly OAM

Purchased 2022

Emily Fairfax

Emily Ross (née Fairfax) (1832-1871) was the eldest child of newspaper publisher John Fairfax - who founded the Fairfax news dynasty in Sydney in 1841 - and his wife Sarah.

1 portrait in the collection

Linda and Binni, 1984 (printed 2013)

Michael Riley

Purchased 2013

Arthur and Ria Murch, 1945

Margaret Michaelis

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Zhang Xiaogang

Featured Artists

Born 1958, Kunming, Yunnan Province. Lives and works in Beijing.

King Charles I

Gerrit van Honthorst

An evening at Yarra Cottage, Port Stephens

Home is where the heart is

Nearest & Dearest

For richer, for poorer

Lily Brett OAM

Lily Brett OAM (b. 1946) is a New York-based novelist, essayist and poet.

2 portraits in the collection

Booklet commemorating the life of Rose Grainger, 1922 reproduced by Percy Grainger

A boy’s best friend is his mother

It's Complicated

Dearest Mummy

John Thomas "Jack" Lang

John Thomas Lang (1876–1975) served two terms as premier of New South Wales in the 1920s and 1930s.

5 portraits in the collection

Sir Hans Heysen OBE

Sir Hans Heysen OBE (1877–1968), one of Australia's best known landscape painters, arrived in Adelaide from his native Germany as a child.

1 portrait in the collection

Millicent Fanny Preston-Stanley Vaughan

Portrait, pencil, charcoal and paper collage on paper

Millicent Fanny Preston Stanley (1883–1955), politician and feminist, was born Millicent Stanley in Sydney in 1883, the daughter of a grocer named Augustine Stanley and his wife Frances (née Preston).

1 portrait in the collection

Nothing black and white about the Greys

It's Complicated

Marriage: a prolonged disaster

Study for "Portrait of the artist as an evolving landscape", 1991

James Gleeson

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ray Wilson OAM in memory of James Agapitos OAM 2011
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Gladys Moncrieff OBE

Gladys Moncrieff (1892-1976), soprano, grew up in Queensland, where she first toured as 'Little Gladys - The Australian Wonder Child' with a small musical road show.

4 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

James Macarthur, c. 1836-1838

Portrait, black and bronze ink with white bodycolour highlight on buff board

Purchased 2019

Essie Coffey

Essie Coffey OAM (1940-1998) was a community worker, singer, actor and film-maker.

1 portrait in the collection

Gaby Kennard

Recorded 2021

Portrait of Mrs Tom Roberts, 1910

Tom Roberts

Purchased with the assistance of funds provided by the Circle of Friends 2013

Frank Lowy AC

Sir Frank Lowy AC (b. 1930) businessman, property developer and philanthropist, founded the Westfield group of shopping centres.

2 portraits in the collection

George Bellette

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on ivory

George Billett (also Bellett, Bellette and Billet, 1812–1885) was a farmer and landowner, an early settler of Sorell in Tasmania, and the son of two ex-convicts.

1 portrait in the collection

Dame Enid Lyons, c. 1943

Justine Kong Sing

Purchased 2016

Frances Saville, 1903

Reutlinger Studios

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2007

Christos Tsiolkas

Portrait, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Recorded 2017

Fay Bottrell, 1981

David Campbell

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

David McAllister

Recorded 2017

Jeanne Little, 1994 (printed 2021)

Robin Sellick

Purchased 2021

Charles Wheeler

Charles Wheeler OBE (1881–1977), artist, won the Archibald Prize in 1933 for a portrait of the popular Melbourne-based writer Ambrose Pratt.

8 portraits in the collection

Hans Heysen, 1960 (cast 2004)

John Dowie AM

Portrait, cast bronze

Purchased with funds provided by the Basil Bressler Bequest 2004

Nora Heysen with her dog sitting outside her home, Hunters Hill, Sydney

Nora Heysen AM

Nora Heysen, AM (1911-2003), fourth child of South Australian landscape painter Sir Hans Heysen, grew up in Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills.

9 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

The people's champion, Mr Lang, c. 1927

Portrait, cast plaster, painted

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2013

Julia Gillard, 2013

Peter Brew-Bevan

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on board

Gift of the artist 2013

Emily Fairfax, 1870

William Macleod

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of John Fairfax Holdings Ltd 2002
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Sam Jinks

Sam Jinks developed a talent for drawing and constructing his ideas alongside his father, a Melbourne cabinetmaker.

2 portraits in the collection

Malarndirri Barbara McCarthy

Portrait, painted terracotta

Malarndirri Barbara McCarthy is a Yanyuwa woman from Borroloola in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

1 portrait in the collection

'The crimson thread of kinship' Henry Parkes

'The crimson thread of kinship' Henry Parkes, c. 1898

Nelson Illingworth

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2012

Transience

More about In the flesh

These paintings by Juan Ford and sculptures by Sam Jinks evoke the impermanence of human life.

Robert Klippel AO

Robert Klippel AO (1920–2001) is considered by some to be the most significant sculptor Australia has yet produced.

5 portraits in the collection

Richard Windeyer

Magazine article by Rineke Dijkstra, 2013

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

Almerisa, Asylumseekerscenter Leiden, March 14, 1993

Interview

Rineke Dijkstra's photographic series of her subject, Almerisa Sehric, evolved over the course of 14 years.

Kyle Vander-Kuyp, c. 2000

Penny Tweedie

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on studio mount

Gift of the artist 2004

Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, 2009

Guido Maestri

Portrait, oil on linen

Gift of the artist 2011. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Mary Windeyer, c. 1891

Freeman Brothers

Gift of J.B. Windeyer 2018

Grant Mudford

Portrait, modern bromide print from an original negative

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

Annette Kellerman, c. 1907 (printed 2003)

H. Walter Barnett

Gift of an anonymous donor 2004

Coji and Owen, c. 2000

Penny Tweedie

Gift of the artist 2004

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.

Reflection

More about In the flesh

A coincidence of intense self-reflection and the motif of the play-weapon occurs in the work of Melbourne artists Juan Ford and Michael Peck.

David Rankin OAM

Australian Athletes in Focus

David Rankin OAM (b. 1946) came to Australia with his English parents at the age of two in 1948.

1 portrait in the collection

Flash

Previous exhibition, 2006

Introduction The National Portrait Gallery’s photographic exhibition Flash: Australian Athletes in Focus explores various interpretations of Australian sporting men and women.

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

Primed

Some Prime Ministers

Previous exhibition, 2019

Seventeen of Australia’s thirty prime ministers to date are represented in the contrasting sizes, moods and mediums of these portraits.

Dr Joan M Redshaw AM, 1982

Barbara Tribe

Portrait, terracotta

Purchased 2016

Paquita Mawson, late 1940s

Ingrid Erns

Portrait, inkjet print on cotton rag paper

Gift of Gareth Mawson Thomas and Pamela Karran-Thomas of the Mawson family 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Betsy Napangardi Lewis, 2007

Greg Weight

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2020. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait Paintings by Matthew Perceval

Previous exhibition, 2007

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

Neil Finn OBE

Singer/songwriter and guitarist Neil Finn OBE (b. 1958) was born in Te Awamutu, Aotearoa New Zealand, a small town on the north island.

3 portraits in the collection

Mrs Woods and ‘Ere, 2013

Karla Dickens

Purchased 2019

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

Dame Nellie Melba GBE

Dame Nellie Melba GBE (1861–1931), world-renowned soprano, was born Helen Porter Mitchell in Melbourne.

8 portraits in the collection

Elizabeth Sarah Roberts

Elizabeth Sarah (Lillie) Roberts (née Williamson, 1860–1928), artist, was born in Launceston, the daughter of Caleb Williamson, a successful merchant, and his wife, Elizabeth.

1 portrait in the collection

Robert Manne AO

Robert Manne (b. 1947), academic and writer, grew up in Melbourne, the child of European Jewish refugees.

1 portrait in the collection

Joan Redshaw AM

Joan Redshaw AM (1921–1994), medical practitioner, chose her career in opposition to her father, a judge, who thought the University of Sydney medical school was a hotbed of women's activists.

1 portrait in the collection

Dorothy Robinson Napangardi

Dorothy Robinson Napangardi (c. 1956–2013) was an influential Pintupi/Warlpiri artist who developed a distinctive abstract monochromatic style across the course of her career.

1 portrait in the collection

Kyle Vander-Kuyp

Kyle Vander-Kuyp (b. 1971) is a Worimi and Yuin man and Australia's greatest ever 110 m hurdler.

2 portraits in the collection

Francisca Adriana (Paquita) Mawson OBE

Lady Francisca Adriana (Paquita) Mawson OBE (1891–1974), community worker and writer, was born in London and came to Australia when her father, mining engineer Guillaume Daniel Delprat, became the General Manager of the Broken Hill Proprietary Co.

1 portrait in the collection

Frank Lowy, 1998 (printed 2011)

Lorrie Graham

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Mary Windeyer, 1850s

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on ivory

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

Mrs Woods, 2013

Karla Dickens

Gift of the artist 2019. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rose Scott

Portrait, synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Rose Scott (1847-1925), feminist and social reformer, devoted much of her life to campaigns that resulted in increased independence for Australian women.

1 portrait in the collection

Fiona McMonagle

Contributing artists

Born: 1977, Letterkenny, Ireland
Works: Melbourne

Waiting for Zipporah (Christine Anu), 2002

Elizabeth Barden

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2004

Elegance in exile

Portrait drawings from colonial Australia

Previous exhibition, 2012

Elegance in exile is an exhibition surveying the work of Richard Read senior, Thomas Bock, Thomas Griffiths Wainewright and Charles Rodius: four artists who, though exiled to Australia as convicts, created many of the most significant and elegant portraits of the colonial period.

Judith Inkamala, 1999

Greg Weight

Previous exhibition, 2003

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

Max Dupain

The Vintage Years

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

Joseph Dalton Hooker, c. 1880s

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2009

Sir Arthur Coles, c. 1971

Sir William Dargie CBE

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

Lady Maisie Drysdale

Lady Maisie Drysdale (1915–2001), children's librarian and artists' muse, developed an interest in art as a child, and attended both the University of Melbourne and George Bell's art school.

1 portrait in the collection

Leah Purcell, c. 2000

Penny Tweedie

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2004

Annie May Moore

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2005

Annie May Moore (1881-1931) was born in New Zealand and studied at the Elam School of Art and Design in Auckland.

5 portraits in the collection

Corporate Characters

A collection of thirty-seven caricatures by the artist Joe Greenberg capture the heroes and villians of Australian business in the 1980s.

The World of Thea Proctor

Previous exhibition, 2005

The World of Thea Proctor is the Portrait Gallery's second major biographical exhibition - that is, the second exhibition to focus exclusively on the life and work of a single individual

Adam Lindsay Gordon

Magazine article by Tony Albert, 2017

Adam Lindsay Gordon (1833-1870) was a poet and horseman. Well-educated, from a relatively well-to-do family, he learned to ride as a boy in England and secured a position in the South Australian Mounted Police in 1852.

1 portrait in the collection

Tony Albert (after Brownie Downing), 2016 by Tony Albert

Observation point

I think the truest representation of someone is a portrait.

Michelle Simmons

Recorded 2018

Alex Kolozsy

Portrait, oil on canvas board

Alex Kolozsy left his native Transylvania for Hungary as a small child.

1 portrait in the collection

Geoffrey Tozer, 1966

Rollo Thomson

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

Mirror With A Memory

Photographic Portraiture in Australia

Previous exhibition, 2000

This is the first major exhibition to examine photographic portraiture in Australia, from its beginnings in the early 1840s to the present day

Robert Rooney

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright

Robert Rooney (1937-2017), painter, conceptual artist and photographer, studied at Swinburne Technical college from 1954 to 1957.

17 portraits in the collection

Martha Sarah Butler, c. 1845

Portrait, watercolour, gouache and pencil on paper

Purchased 2009

Pixie O'Harris

Portrait, brush and ink, pen and ink, stencil cut-out with watercolour highlights on paper

Pixie O’Harris MBE (1903–1991), author and illustrator, was born Rona Olive Harris in Cardiff, one of the eight children of painter, George Frederick Harris.

1 portrait in the collection

MacKenzie family silhouette, 1846

Samuel Metford

Gift of the Estate of Nancy Wiseman 2007

Julia Gillard AC

Previous exhibition, 2020

Julia Gillard AC (b. 1961) was the 27th Prime Minister of Australia from June 2010 to June 2013.

1 portrait in the collection

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2020

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.

Duke of Wellington, 1841

John Lucas

Portrait, mezzotint on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2016

Frank Gardiner

Francis Gardiner (Christie) (1830-c. 1903), bushranger, came to New South Wales with his family as a child.

1 portrait in the collection

Danila Vassilieff

Previous exhibition, 2010

Danila Vassilieff, born in Russia, arrived in Australia in the early 1920s having served in a Cossack cavalry regiment, been captured by Communist forces and escaped via Persia and India to China.

1 portrait in the collection

Australian of the Year

Inspiring a Nation

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

William Charles Windeyer, c. 1857

Portrait, daguerreotype

Gift of the Windeyer family 2009

Robert Rooney, self portrait December 1978, 1978 (printed 2012)

Robert Rooney

Magazine article by Cayce Zavaglia, 2017

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Thread bare

US artist Cayce Zavaglia reveals human duality in her striking embroidered portraiture.

Judge a person by their cover

Death masks and phrenology

Alexandra Roginski explains the history behind the pseudo-science of phrenology, popular in the nineteenth century.

Elizabeth Blackburn AC

Photographic Portraits from 19th Century Australia

Elizabeth Blackburn AC (b. 1948) shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2009, becoming the first Australian woman Nobel laureate.

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.

John Gould

John Gould (1804–1881) is known as the ‘father of Australian ornithology’ for his Birds of Australia, published in seven volumes between 1840 and 1848.

1 portrait in the collection

Geoffrey Tozer

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

1 portrait in the collection

Ron Mueck

an unknown artist, Thomas Wharton

Ron Mueck (b. 1958), sculptor, first attracted widespread attention in 1997, when his poignant work Dead Dad was featured in the landmark exhibition Sensation: Young British Artists from the Saatchi Collection at the Royal Academy, London and subsequently shown in Berlin and New York.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Sutcliffe Mort and his wife Theresa, c. 1847

Portrait, daguerreotype in a pinchbeck case

Purchased 2001

Annette Kellerman

Annette Kellerman (1886–1975), champion swimmer and entertainer, was among the early twentieth century's most recognisable women.

2 portraits in the collection

Edith E. Williams

Edith Ellen Williams (nee Horne, (1851–1885) was the first wife of Hartley Williams (1843–1929), a Victorian Supreme Court judge from 1881 until 1903.

1 portrait in the collection

Ross Edwards

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

Ross Edwards (b. 1943), composer, became determined upon a life of composition as a child.

1 portrait in the collection

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.

Margel Hinder AM

Margel Hinder AM (née Harris) (1906-1995), sculptor, trained in Buffalo and Boston in the 1920s.

1 portrait in the collection

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (1926–2022)

9 September 2022

Media

The National Portrait Gallery is deeply saddened by the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch in British history. Throughout her 70-year reign, Her Majesty represented graciousness, humanity and stability during times of enormous social change.

Rong Rong

Featured Artists

Born Li Zhirong 1968, Zhangzhou, Fujian Province. Lives and works in Beijing.

Rosalie Kunoth-Monks OAM

Portrait, stereo view gelatin silver photograph on paper

Rosalie Kunoth-Monks OAM (1937-2022), Arrernte and Anmatjere woman, Aboriginal activist, former actress and nun, was born at Artekerre soak on Utopia Cattle Station in the Northern Territory, the daughter of Allan and Ruby Kunoth.

2 portraits in the collection

Great Suffragette demonstration in London

Great Suffragette demonstration in London, 1911

Rose Stereograph Company

Purchased 2011

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023

Previous exhibition, 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.

Rhonda Sharpe

Significant Australian Women 1913–2013

Luritja woman Rhonda Sharpe was born in 1977 in Alice Springs and is an artist working out of Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, in the Larapinta Valley Town Camp.

2 portraits in the collection

First Ladies

Previous exhibition, 2013

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

Sir Edgar Barton ‘EB’ Coles

Sir Edgar Barton ‘EB’ Coles (1899-1981) was the longest-serving chief executive of the Coles retail group.

2 portraits in the collection

George Selth Coppin, c. 1863

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Observation point

Magazine article by Laith McGregor, 2013

Laith McGregor's fascination with the human form stems from an imaginary childhood friend.

Clara Crosbie, c. 1885

Arthur William Burman

Portraits in the Landscape

Gift of John McPhee 2018

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.

Coming into being

NPPP 2018 exhibition essay

Previous exhibition, 2018

Dr Christopher Chapman, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2018 Prize.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 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.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2022

Previous exhibition, 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.

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.

Duty bound

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

Geoffrey R. Robertson AO KC

Archived media releases 2019

Geoffrey Roland Robertson AO KC (b. 1946), barrister, academic and defender of human rights, grew up in Sydney, attending Epping Boys' High and then the University of Sydney.

1 portrait in the collection

Summertime Fun at the National Portrait Gallery

4 January 2019

Escape the heat this summer and step inside the National Portrait Gallery for an array of family-fun activities. From storytelling and drawing to music and art, there’s something for everyone to enjoy at the Gallery.

Thomas Wentworth Wills

Magazine article by Ralph Heimans AM, 2018

Thomas Wentworth (Tom) Wills (1836–1880), is popularly thought of as the co-inventor of Australian Rules football.

2 portraits in the collection

The Architecture of Music (Vladimir Ashkenazy)

Observation point

As I prepared for my recent retrospective at Frederiksborg Castle, Denmark’s National Portrait Gallery, I was struck with the feeling of looking back at a visual diary of the past 30 years.

Madame Marie Carandini

Portrait, carte de visite photograph on card

Marie Carandini (née Burgess, 1826–1894), aka 'Madame Carandini', was seven years old when her family arrived in Van Diemen's Land as assisted immigrants.

1 portrait in the collection

William Robertson and Martha Mary Robertson, 1863

William Edward Kilburn

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

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.

Paul Capsis, 2004

Esther Erlich

Portrait, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Gift of the artist 2017

The 2023 National Photographic Portrait Prize

16 June 2023

Media

Shea Kirk’s portrait of friend and fellow-artist Emma Armstrong-Porter has won the 2023 National Photographic Portrait Prize.

C.H.T. Costantini

Charles Henry Theodore Costantini (also Constantine, Constantini and Costantine) was a Paris-born surgeon of Italian descent who was twice transported to the Australian colonies in the 1820s.

1 portrait in the collection

Queen Elizabeth II

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (1926–2022) was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, who subsequently became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

4 portraits in the collection

Tom Wills, c. 1857 (printed c. 1905-1910)

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on grey paper on card

Gift of T S Wills Cooke 2014. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Hattie Shepparde, 1872

Bardwell's Royal Studio

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

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

Sarah and Ann Jacob, c. 1866

Townsend Duryea

Purchased 2018

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

Australian Visit

Previous exhibition, 2006

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.

Neilma B. Gantner

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2020

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

Miles from nowhere, 2008 (printed 2014) from the Games of consequence series 2008 Polixeni Papapetrou

Mother’s muse

Inga Walton traces the poignant path of photographer Polixeni Papapetrou, revealed in the NGV’s summer retrospective.

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.

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.

Cocky McGrath

The long life and few words of a vice-regal cockatoo

The house, the horse, the wife and the offspring

Magazine article by Gael Newton, 2003

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

Vintage Max

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

The Obama effect

Magazine article by Kim Sajet, 2018

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

Living landscape

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2016

Gillian Raymond ponders landscapes as self-portraiture in Michael Taylor’s intimate expressionism.

Sitter still

Magazine article by Emeritus Professor Jaynie Anderson AM, 2015

Jaynie Anderson reflects on her experience as sitter for Reshid Bey’s 1962 portrait.

Observation point

Magazine article by Zhong Chen, 2011

Zhong Chen's paintings of boys on Chinese zodiac animals and kung fu images reflect his identity as a Chinese-Australian artist.

Miscellaneous obsessions

Magazine article by William Yang, 2022

William Yang shares the stories behind his autobiographical self portraits that celebrate his cultural heritage and identity.

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2013

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852), army officer and hero, was the prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1828 to 1830.

1 portrait in the collection

All dressed up

Jane Raffan asks do clothes make the portrait, and can the same work with a new title fetch a better price?

Painting shirt (Self portrait), 2011 by Kate Beynon

Observation point

Magazine article by Kate Beynon, 2011

Artist Kate Beynon reflects on the place of portraiture in her artistic career.

Greta In Her Kitchen, 36 weeks, 2018 by Alana Holmberg

Winner announced for National Photographic Portrait Prize 2019

22 February 2019

Archived media releases 2019

From an outstanding field of more than 3,000 entries, culminating in a shortlist of 39 exceptional finalists, the Winner and Highly Commended entries for this year’s National Photographic Portrait Prize have been named.

Caroline Amelia Elizabeth
of Brunswick, 1804

Around the grounds

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2010

Anne Sanders writes about the exhibitions Victoria & Albert: Art & Love on display at the Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace and the retrospective of Sir Thomas Lawrence at the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Trumble's way

Magazine article by Jennifer Higgie, 2022

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?

Hard truths

Jennifer Higgie reveals how Alice Neel reinvigorated 20th century portraiture with her honest and perceptive depictions of the human experience.

Figurative foundation

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Joanna Gilmour explores the life and art of the Australian artist Janet Dawson.

John McRae

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

William Charles Wentworth -The Australian Patriot

The Wentworths – Hidden in Plain Sight

Magazine article by Dr Grace Blakeley-Carroll, 2015

Grace Carroll on the gendered world of the Wentworths.

Mrs NR Mackintosh (Anne) by Ruth Hollick

Natural, artistic and unselfconscious

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2016

Angus Trumble gazes at the once bright star of photographer Ruth Hollick.

Rupert Bunny

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

Rupert Charles Wulsten Bunny (1864–1947) was one of the most celebrated Australian expatriate artists of his generation, achieving a degree of success in Paris in the 1890s and early 1900s that was unmatched by his peers.

3 portraits in the collection

Of human clay

The first collaborative commission has arrived. It's a self portrait, it's ceramic and it's from Hermannsburg.

Swimming every day

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2015

National Photographic Portrait Prize judge Christopher Chapman connects this year’s entries to iconic contemporary american photographers.

A bear of great substance

Archived media releases 2018

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

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.

So Fine

17 May 2018

The National Portrait Gallery is pleased to announce its winter exhibition is So Fine: Contemporary women artists make Australian history. It will open to the public from 29 June 2018.

Swimming every day

NPPP 2015 exhibition essay

Magazine article by Robyn Sweaney, 2016

Dr Christopher Chapman, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2015 Prize.

Untitled (girl on chair with red shoes) by Violet Frisby

Finding Mrs Frisby

Robyn Sweaney's quiet Violet obsession.

Thilin-Thilin Gooragall Nyajaringil Garnkiny-nu (white gum tree, mother for the moon), 2018 by Shirley Purdie

Storytelling

The fourth row of paintings interweave Ngarranggarni, memories, relationships and Country.

The blue of the dawn, 2009 by Vittoria Dussoni

NPPP 2011 exhibition essay

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2007

Dr Sarah Engledow, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2011 Prize.

Painters' paradise

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

Pre-Raphaelite Profile

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2006

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

Entry guidelines 2024

Little Darlings Youth Portrait Prize

Read the full requirements for entering the prize.

So Fine

28 June 2018

Archived media releases 2018

Ten women artists explore the possibilities of portraiture as a contemporary art form; and reinterpret and reimagine Australian history in the Portrait Gallery’s new exhibition So Fine: Contemporary women artists make Australian history.

Go Figure!

Magazine article by Claire Roberts, 2013

Claire Roberts interviews Swiss art collector Uli Sigg.

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.

Worth her salt

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

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

Private virtues public lives

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

Real close

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2012

Peter Ciemitis breached regulations when creating the portrait of the polymath environmental scientist George Seddon.

Portrait of Elizabeth Gould with a raptor, possibly a red-footed falcon (Falco vespertinus), painted in her lifetime Artist unknown

Birds of a feather

Magazine article by Annette Twyman, 2021

Charting a path from cockatiel to finch, Annette Twyman explores her family portraits and stories.

One hundred days at 7pm 2015 by Fiona McMonagle

Self-effacing

Magazine article by Michael Wardell, 2016

Michael Wardell samples the fare in the University of Queensland National Self-portrait Prize.

On the wall – Guangzhou (II), 2002 by Weng Fen

Exhibition themes

The four main themes of the exhibition: About face, Body politic, Skin deep, and Self reflex.

Self-portrait with guardian spirits, 2009-2010 Kate Beynon

Kate Beynon’s transcultural life and art

Phoebe Lupton profiles artist Kate Beynon, whose contemplative self portrait features in Archie 100: A Century of the Archibald Prize.

200 Years of Portraiture

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2022

To celebrate his family bicentenary, Malcolm Robertson looks at the portraiture legacy left by his ancestors.

Virginia Woolf, 1902 George Charles Beresford

Love my way

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

Jose Legaspi

by Patrick D. Flores

Artist essays

Jose Legaspi was born in 1959 in Manila. He achieved degrees in zoology and biology before turning to fine arts in the mid-1980s.

Robyn Sweaney

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2016

Robyn's parents had two terriers, Wuff and Snuff. In spite of Snuff’s ominous name and a couple of close shaves – once, he jumped out of a moving car, and another time, on a long road trip, he was accidentally left behind at a petrol station – he outlived Wuff.

Boyd to man

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

Murray frees himself from straightjacket in public, 1928 by Sam Hood

Risky business

Magazine article by John Zubrzycki, 2016

John Zubrzycki lauds the characters of the Australian escapology trade.

ORA - Homesickness Project 2015 by Chrys Zantis

Food for thought

Magazine article by Michael Wardell, 2016

Michael Wardell on Chrys Zantis’ Ora.

Thomas Gainsborough, c.1758-59 by Thomas Gainsborough

Keep it in the family

Magazine article by David Solkin, 2019

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

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.

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.

Profile of a marriage

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Dr Sarah Engledow explores the lives of Sir George Grey and his wife Eliza, the subjects of a pair of wax medallions in the National Portrait Gallery's collection.

Moving pictures

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2008

The exhibition California Video at the J Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles demonstrated how video artists expand the boundaries of portraiture.

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.

Self Portrait, Stuart Campbell by Stuart Campbell

The essence of you

Magazine article by Lee Tulloch, 2011

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

Vivan Sundaram

by Rakhee Balaram

Artist essays

Born in 1943 in Simla, Vivan Sundaram’s long career has given him opportunities to work in a range of mediums – painting, installation, assemblage, photography, digital media and film.

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.

Kyoto Temple Enlists Android Buddhist Deity to Help People, 23 February 2019 The Asahi Shimbun.

More than human

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2023

Gillian Raymond investigates the history of humanoid robots and asks, is this the future of portraiture?

Talking heads

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2008

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

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

Venetia, Lady Digby, circa 1633-1634 by Sir Anthony van Dyck

Love in the extreme

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2020

Joanna Gilmour reveals love’s more intense manifestations in the tale of Lord Kenelm and Venetia Digby.

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.

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.

Love City; George Gittoes on hilltop 2013

Man of war

Magazine article by Tedi Bills, 2016

Tedi Bills talks to George Gittoes about canvassing conflict.

Mural of Italian/Roman actress Anna Magnani (1908–1973) with face mask, April 2020 Unknown artist

Of plague and portraits

Magazine article by Barry York, 2018

Corinna Cullen on the symbolic power of pandemic-related imagery over the ages.

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.

Group photograph taken at the coronation of King George VI including Queen Elizabeth II, Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Queen Mother, 12 May 1937 by Hay Wrightson

Poise and Carats

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

I keep going back to Cartier: The Exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia next door, and, within the exhibition, to Princess Marie Louise’s diamond, pearl and sapphire Indian tiara (1923), surely one of the most superb head ornaments ever conceived.

Finest quality

Joanna Gilmour explores the life of Chinese-Australian businessman and philanthropist Quong Tart.

Naked nostalgia

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2016

Penelope Grist reminisces about the halcyon days of a print icon, before the infusion of the internet’s shades of grey.

Head, hand, heart

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2007

An extensive selection of portraits by John Brack were on display at the National Portrait Gallery in late 2007.

Portfolio of 54 portraits compiled by Queen Victoria, 1859–1861 by John Jabez Edwin Mayall, Camille Silvy, Frances Day and William Bambridge

Queen of cartes

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2019

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

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.

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.

HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, 2006 Ralph Heimans AM

Dane reign

Magazine article by Mette Skougaard and Thomas Lyngby, 2018

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

Monument to Mrs. Moore St. Luke’s Church, Liverpool, Sydney

Waterloo and Mrs. Moore

Beyond the centenary of the ANZAC landings at Gallipoli, a number of other notable anniversaries converge this year. Waterloo deserves a little focussed consideration, for in the decades following 1815 numerous Waterloo and Peninsular War veterans came to Australia.

Beyond the bow tie

NPPP 2017 exhibition essay

Nathan Faiman delves into the rich life story and legacy of Alan Goldberg.

Trevor Jamieson, 2016 by Brett Canet-Gibson

The more things change...

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2015

Dr Sarah Engledow, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2017 Prize.

Self Portrait with Stetson, 2011 by Darren McDonald

Painting them gently

Penny Grist on motivation, method and melancholy in the portraiture of Darren McDonald.

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.

Anne-Louise Lambert as Miranda Courtesy Picnic Productions

Rock star

Magazine article by Jennifer Coombes, 2018

Jennifer Coombes explores the lush images of Picnic at Hanging Rock, featuring Anne-Louise Lambert’s Miranda, the face of the film.

A Family Being Served with Tea, ca. 1745 by an unknown artist

A reflection on conversation pieces

Magazine article by Stella Ramage, 2016

There is in the collection of the Yale Center for British Art in New Haven, Connecticut, an English painting, datable on the basis of costume to about 1745, that has for many years exercised my imagination.

Missionary positions

Stella Ramage on Father McHardy’s Bougainville portraiture.

Give me five

Magazine article by Karen Quinlan AM, 2021

National Portrait Gallery director Karen Quinlan AM nominates her quintet of favourites from the collection, with early twentieth-century ‘selfies’ filling the roster.

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.

Off grid

Magazine article by Aimee Board, 2019

Aimee Board ventures within and beyond to consider two remarkable new Gallery acquisitions.

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.

It's a Mora!

Magazine article by Tedi Bills, 2016

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

Albert Jonas and John Xiniwe of The African Choir, 1891 London Stereoscopic Co.

Back in black

Magazine article by Krysia Kitch, 2017

Krysia Kitch reviews black chronicles at the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Honour board

Some prime ministers

The portraiture of Kristin Headlam

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

Confessional conversations

Magazine article by Fiona Gruber, 2015

Fiona Gruber investigates the work of Australian painter Kristin Headlam.

Shall I raise my eyebrows and gasp? (Alex), 2011 by TextaQueen

Pen power

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2015

Politics and personae in the portraiture of TextaQueen by Jane Raffan.

Inner Worlds and psychoanalysis

Lecture, 4 June 2011

Inner Worlds evokes a broad view of psychology as a discipline. However, the specific interests of the practitioners whose portraits are included in the exhibition incorporate specialist areas including psychoanalysis.

Darren McDonald

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2015

The wild balancing act of McDonald’s home décor (is that there as a joke? where do I actually sit down? is this ironic or what? what a lovely photo of Darren and Robin in Europe!) is reflected in his own personality.

In good company

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

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.

Naked ambition

Magazine article by Karl James, 2015

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

Lauded legacy

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

The numbers man

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2011

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

Earth to earth

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

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

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.

The silent partner

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2015

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

Lucy Culliton

Most well-regarded pictures of chickens show them dead. A reliable way to tell if a chicken in a painting is dead is to check if it’s hanging upside down, because unlike, say, cockatoos, chickens don’t practise inversion for enjoyment in life.

Asiel Timor Dei, ca. 1728 by a master of Calamarca

The Viceroyalty of New Spain

European painters always enjoyed a good deal of latitude in the representation of angels, those asexual, bodiless, celestial regiments of God, so long as they were young and beautiful.

Anna Culliton

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.

The art of Inner Worlds

Lecture, 7 May 2011

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

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

Patrick White at Centennial Park, 1979–1980

Listomania

Sarah Engledow describes the fall-out once Brett Whiteley stuck Patrick White’s list of his loves and hates onto his great portrait of the writer.

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.

Portrait of a Pioneer , 1917
Violet Teague

Off her own bat

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

Joanna Gilmour profiles Violet Teague, whose sophisticated works hid her originality and non-conformity in plain sight.

Secure the shadow ere the substance fade

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2015

The tragic tale of Tom Wills, the ‘inventor’ of Australian Rules Football.

Uncommon Australians

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2015

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

Regarding Henrys

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

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

The Thyssen Art Macabre

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2015

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

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.

Maria Caroline Brownrigg

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

The Triumph of Death, c. 1562 by Pieter Bruegel the Elder

The Black Death

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

The best horror stories are real. A flea sinks its proboscis into the skin of a sick black rat, feeds on its blood, and ingests lethally multiplying bacteria.

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.

A non-material and non-physical portrait

Lecture, 21 May 2011

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

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.

Less than six degrees of separation

Lecture, 28 May 2011