© National Portrait Gallery 2025
King Edward Terrace, Parkes
Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia
Phone +61 2 6102 7000
ABN: 54 74 277 1196
Glorious
A Diamond Jubilee portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Previous exhibition, 2012
Glorious: A Diamond Jubilee portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is a collection-based display representing The Queen in the early and late years of her glittering sixty-year reign.
Ralph Heimans
Portraiture. Power. Influence.
Previous exhibition, 2024
The exhibition will feature some of the most significant portraits in the artist’s career to date, from early major works such as his painting of HM Queen Mary of Denmark through to his most recent.
Portraits for Posterity
Previous exhibition, 2006
Drawn from some of the many donations made to the Gallery's collection, the exhibition Portraits for Posterity pays homage both to the remarkable (and varied) group of Australians who are portrayed in the portraits and the generosity of the many donors who have presented them to the Gallery.
Carte-o-mania!
Previous exhibition, 2018
Drawn from the NPG’s burgeoning collection of cartes de visite, Carte-o-mania! celebrates the wit, style and substance of the pocket-sized portraits that were taken and collected like crazy in post-goldrush Australia.
Gallery One
Current exhibition
Drawn from the National Portrait Gallery collection, this salon-style hang references the lavish 18th- and 19th-century European salons where paintings were hung floor-to-ceiling.
WHO ARE YOU
Australian portraiture
Previous exhibition, 2022
Featuring 130 works across painting, film, photography, screen printing, sculpture, and then some – it explores our inner worlds, outer selves, intimacy, isolation, celebrity and more.
Intimate Portraits
Previous exhibition, 2002
Intimate Portraits is an exhibition of paintings, drawings and prints that explore the less public side of portraiture
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
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
A Tribute to William Dobell
Previous exhibition, 1999
Adapted from A Tribute to William Dobell an exhibition presented by the Australian National University's Drill Hall Gallery in association with the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, The National Gallery of Australia, and the Australian War Memorial. Dobell is of course, celebrated for his achievements in portraiture, winning the Archibald prize (1943, 1948 and 1959), the Wynne Prize (1948), and representing Australia at the 1954 Venice Biennale. Curator Mary Eagle concludes her essay in the catalogue of the exhibition thus, "Overall I see a dissonance in Dobell’s art and life
Karsh
Faces of the Twentieth Century
Previous exhibition, 1998
Yousuf Karsh - the most famous portrait photographer in the world - has photographed the statesmen, artists, literary and scientific figures who have defined the 20th century and shaped our lives, In this, his 90th year, the National Portrait Gallery is thrilled to present an exhibition of Karsh's photography of 20th century figures.
Sir William Dargie
A Ninetieth Birthday Tribute
Previous exhibition, 2002
As a tribute to Sir William Dargie's singular contribution to Australian art and cultural institutions, and on the occasion of his birthday, The Australian War Memorial, Parliament House and the National Portrait Gallery will mount exhibitions of his work between May and October
Thousand Mile Stare
Portrait photography by John Elliott
Previous exhibition, 2004
Thousand mile stare provides a unique portrait of people of rural Australia
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.
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.
Of Kings and men
Celebrating 100 years of the Historic Memorials Collection
Previous exhibition, 2011
This display celebrates 100 years of the Historic Memorials Collection and its role in commissioning portraits of parliamentary and judicial figures in Australia.