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

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are warned that this website contains images of deceased persons.

Riverboat Rod & Ruby, 2022

James Bugg

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023 Finalist

digital photograph on paper (frame: 61.7cm x 49.7cm depth 3.0cm)
Riverboat Rod & Ruby, 2022

Rodney Hobbs, known by many as Riverboat Rod, has devoted a lifetime to building model paddle steamers. He builds each model by hand in a workshop a short walk from the banks of the Murray River. Each model takes hundreds of hours to construct. Rod's grandmother worked and lived on a paddle steamer, and her stories inspired him to begin recreating these boats. Ruby is his favourite.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023
(More information, View all 47 photos)

Mela
Jaye
Téa-Anna Parvathy Murrin – Australian cultural identity
Mirror II

Related information

Ruby (left view), 2022 Shea Kirk
Ruby (left view), 2022 Shea Kirk
Ruby (left view), 2022 Shea Kirk
Ruby (left view), 2022 Shea Kirk

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.
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The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders past and present. We respectfully advise that this site includes works by, images of, names of, voices of and references to deceased people.

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