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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.

Portrait of Mrs Tom Roberts

Who is Lillie Roberts?

Devotion

Talented wife for a talented husband

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Ben Roberts-Smith, 2018

by Julian Kingma
General content

Commissioned in 2018 with funds raised through the 2020 project

Pimple, 2007 by Yang Na

Yang Na

Featured Artists

Born 1983, Chongqing, Sichuan Province. Lives and works in Beijing.

Born 1989 in Beijing (250%), 1995–96 by Liu Wei

Liu Wei

Featured Artists

Born 1965 in Beijing. Lives and works in Beijing.

Portrait of Mrs Tom Roberts

2013-14 Acquisition Fund

Annual Appeal

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

East Village, Beijing no. 20 (Zhang Huan, 12 Square Metres), 1994 by Rong Rong

Rong Rong

Featured Artists

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

Untitled, 1995 by Fang Lijun

Fang Lijun

Featured Artists

Born 1963, Handan, Hebei Province China. Lives and works in Beijing.

Uli Sigg

About the exhibition

General content

Portraits from the Sigg collection, from 1979 to the present including painting, sculpture, photography, video and installation.

Red child, 2005 by Zhang Xiaogang

Zhang Xiaogang

Featured Artists

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

Reg Richardson AM

Grow the Portrait Gallery of Australia

9 June 2016
Archived media releases 2016

The Portrait Gallery is calling for contributions to support in the acquisition of superb portraits for the national collection.

She – Unemployed Girl, 2003 by Yu Hong

Yu Hong

Featured Artists

Born 1966 in Beijing, China. Lives and works in Beijing.

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

Chinese Art

General content

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

Dr Claire Roberts

References

General content

About the exhibition curator Claire Roberts, and writers Eugene Wang and Zhang Letian.

Mary Chomley

The Cosmopolitans

Now on display in Gallery Two
General content

Spanning the 1880s to the 1930s, this collection display celebrates the innovations in art – and life – introduced by the generation of Australians who travelled to London and Paris for experience and inspiration in the decades either side of 1900.

Adut, The Studio Series, 2015 Atong Atem

Icons and Identities

General content

It’s often thought that foremost among portraiture’s many functions is the documentation of individuals who are celebrated and familiar, or who best exemplify the temper and identity of a certain place at a certain time.

Carol McGregor

Contributing artists

Born: 1961, Hastings, New Zealand
Works: Brisbane

James, 2012 by Myles Nelson

Myles Nelson

Finalist interviews

It was definitely a candid encounter as was the expression on the face. It was constructed insofar as the image was deliberately taken from a distance so as to minimize intrusion and to magnify the effect of the image.

The uncertain recovery, 2012 by Arianne McNaught

Arianne McNaught

Finalist interviews

I think the most important thing in capturing candid shots is to never take the photo when people are expecting you to press the shutter. The more poignant moments are not the stock standard images of people looking at the camera smiling but after or before when they are really interacting with each other.

The Chess Player, 2011 by Andrew Campbell

Andrew Campbell

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

Jessica Mauboy

National Portrait Gallery unveils twenty new portrait commissions to celebrate twenty years

18 October 2018
Archived media releases 2018

The National Portrait Gallery has unveiled twenty new portrait commissions of Australian leaders and individualists as part of its twentieth birthday celebrations in a new exhibition, 20/20: Celebrating twenty years with twenty new portrait commissions.

Untitled, 1995 by Fang Lijun

Go Figure! Contemporary Chinese Portraiture

12 July 2012
Previous media releases

Exhibited simultaneously at the two locations, Go Figure! is drawn from the Sigg Collection, the largest and most significant collection of contemporary Chinese art anywhere in the world.

Portrait of Margaret Olley in her Paddington studio, 2011 by John McRae

John McRae

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

Dr Anne Sanders

Less than six degrees of separation

Lecture, 28 May 2011
General content

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

Rachel Ward and Bryan Brown

Australian Love Stories

4 January 2021
Archived media releases 2021

A major new exhibition celebrating love in all its guises. Opening 20 March 2021.

Turia Pitt

2021 Annual Appeal

Annual Appeal

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

spaces between movement and stillness

Harriet Schwarzrock: spaces between movement and stillness

10 February 2021
Archived media releases 2021

To celebrate the new exhibition Australian Love Stories, renowned Australian glass artist Harriet Schwarzrock has been commissioned to make a large-scale installation reflecting on the role the heart plays as our emotional centre.

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Annual Appeal

Listed by year
Honour board
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Portrait Donors

Listed by year
Honour board

Arcadia: Sound of the sea

Exhibition introduction
General content

One night in the spring of 1970 in an old house in Whale Beach, north of Sydney, John Witzig, Albe Falzon and David Elfick put together the first issue of Tracks, playing Neil Young’s album Harvest over and over again as they pasted up galleys of type.

The Art Lovers - Megan, 2013 by Gary Grealy

Everybody, look serious

NPPP 2014 exhibition essay
General content

Dr Sarah Engledow, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2014 Prize.

National Portrait Gallery

History

About us

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

Barry Humphries

Uncommon Australians

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling
General content

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

Self portrait

Rick Amor: 21 Portraits

General content

Sarah Engledow chronicles Rick Amor's work and accomplishments in this extensive essay in conjunction with the exhibition Rick Amor: 21 Portraits.

George Reid paperweight

Some prime ministers

General content

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

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Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia

Phone +61 2 6102 7000
ABN: 54 74 277 1196

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.

This website comprises and contains copyrighted materials and works. Copyright in all materials and/or works comprising or contained within this website remains with the National Portrait Gallery and other copyright owners as specified.

The National Portrait Gallery respects the artistic and intellectual property rights of others. The use of images of works of art reproduced on this website and all other content may be restricted under the Australian Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Requests for a reproduction of a work of art or other content can be made through a Reproduction request. For further information please contact NPG Copyright.

The National Portrait Gallery is an Australian Government Agency