© National Portrait Gallery 2025
King Edward Terrace, Parkes
Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia
Phone +61 2 6102 7000
ABN: 54 74 277 1196
Mysterious eyes
Arthur Boyd portraits from 1945
Previous exhibition, 2016
Boyd’s self-portrait at age 25 is joined by his equally emotive portraits of those around him.
Impressions
Painting light and life
Previous exhibition, 2011
Impressions: Painting light and life presents portraits by, and of, artists at the heart of Australian impressionism including Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton and Frederick McCubbin.
Arthur Boyd Portraits
Previous exhibition, 1999
This is the first in a series of National Portrait Gallery exhibitions to survey the portraits painted by artists who are not thought of, primarily, as portrait painters
Sam Haskins
Portraits & Other Stories
Previous exhibition, 2006
Haskins is known for his poetic combinations of images and this exhibition of 'extended' portraits builds on this approach.
Presence and Absence
Portrait Sculpture in Australia
Previous exhibition, 2003
This exhibition focuses on exploring national and communal identity through sculptural production in Australia, from the early decades of settlement through to the present day
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.
National Youth Self Portrait Prize
NYSPP 2010
Previous exhibition, 2010
An annual event, the National Youth Self Portrait Prize seeks to encourage young people to embrace self portraiture and its expressive possibilities.
Heads of the People
A Portrait of Colonial Australia
Previous exhibition, 2000
For Tom Roberts - Australia's best nineteenth-century portrait painter - neither a proto-national portrait gallery nor more popular collections of portrait heads, were sufficient public celebrations for the notables of Australian history
Open Air
Portraits in the Landscape
Previous exhibition, 2008
Open Air is an exhibition of portraits of Australians in environments of particular significance to them.
Husbands and Wives
Photographic Portraits from 19th Century Australia
Previous exhibition, 2010
'I have just been to my dressing case to take a peep at you.
Australian of the Year
Inspiring a Nation
Previous exhibition, 2010
The Australian of the Year Awards have often provoked controversy about who is selected and whether their achievements are remarkable.
Mark Strizic
A Journey in Photography
Previous exhibition, 2004
This exhibition traces the creative output of nearly 50 years by one of Australia's landmark living photographers.
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
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.
Clifton Pugh
Australians
Previous exhibition, 2005
This exhibition offers a comprehensive display of Clifton Pugh's portraits revealing his development and growth from tonal paintings to a unique style that was in demand from politicians, artists, academics and Australian personalities.
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.