Search / henry room

John Cochran after Henry Room

Henry Room, painter, grew up in Birmingham, connected with a prominent evangelical family.

2 portraits in the collection

Reverend Robert Ross MD, Sydney, New South Wales

Reverend Robert Ross MD, Sydney, New South Wales, n.d.

John Cochran after Henry Room

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ted and Gina Gregg 2012

Captain R.C. Morgan, Missionary ship 'John Williams'

Captain R.C. Morgan, Missionary ship 'John Williams', n.d.

Henry Meyer, T Cadell & W Davies after Sir Thomas Lawrence, William Evans

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Gina and Ted Gregg 2010

The Rt Hon. Henry Robert Stewart, Lord Viscount Castlereagh, MRIA & FRS

The Rt Hon. Henry Robert Stewart, Lord Viscount Castlereagh, MRIA & FRS, 1814

Francis Holl after Henry William Pickersgill

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ted and Gina Gregg 2012

The Right Honourable Henry Goulburn MP, c. 1850

Portrait, steel engraving on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Henry Bathurst, Earl Bathurst, 1810

Henry Meyer after Thomas Phillips

Portrait, soft ground etching on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Regarding Henrys

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

Henry G. Dan AM

Henry Gibson Dan AM (1929–2020), universally known as Seaman Dan, was a Torres Strait Islander singer/songwriter who grew up on Thursday Island.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Weigall Jnr

Henry Weigall Junior (1829-1925) was the son of sculptor, cameo engraver and medallist Henry Weigall (1800-1883).

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Talbot

Henry Fox Talbot (1920-1999), photographer, was born Henry Tichauer. The son of a middle-class Jewish family, he changed his name after fleeing Germany and being 'volunteered' out of England on the Dunera.

2 portraits in the collection

Henry Bosch, National Security Commission

Henry Bosch AO

Henry Bosch AO is the former Chairman of the National Companies and Securities Commission and was Chairman of the Working Group on Corporate Practices and Conduct.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Bathurst KG PC

Henry Bathurst, Third Earl Bathurst KG PC (1762-1834) was a lord of the Admiralty from 1783 to 1789; a lord of the Treasury from 1789 to 1791; and commissioner of the Board of Control from 1793 to 1802.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry H. Glover

English lithographer and watercolourist Henry Heath Glover (c. 1810-1858) emigrated to South Australia in 1848 with his two sons - one of whom, Henry Heath Glover Junior (1828-1904) was also an illustrator and printmaker.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Kendall

Henry (Thomas Henry) Kendall (1839-1882) was once regarded as the finest poet Australia had produced.

1 portrait in the collection

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention, Sydney 1891 from Australasia Illustrated

Sir Henry Norman

Sir Henry Norman was Governor Queensland at the Constitutional Convention, Sydney, 1891.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson

Henry Lawson (1867-1922), one of Australia's defining authors, is best known for his short stories and ballads depicting the hardship of bush life.

6 portraits in the collection

Henry Meyer

Henry Hoppner Meyer, thought to be the son of an engraver, was a nephew of the painter John Hoppner.

2 portraits in the collection

Henry Reynolds

Henry Reynolds (b. 1938), historian, studied at the University of Tasmania before taking up a lectureship at Townsville University College (later James Cook University) in 1965.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry (Harry) Donnan (member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team)

Henry Donnan

Henry (Harry) Donnan (1864-1956) notched up a total of 94 first class cricket matches between 1887 and 1901.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Hopkins

Henry Hopkins (1787–1870), merchant and philanthropist, opened his first shop on Elizabeth Street in Hobart soon after arriving in the colony in September 1822.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Mundy

Artist Henry Mundy arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1831 and took up a position as teacher of drawing, French and music at Ellinthorp Hall, a school near Ross established ‘with a view to the improvement of Young Ladies’.

4 portraits in the collection

Henry Mayer

Henry Mayer (1919-1991) was Professor of Government at Sydney University from the 1960s to 1980s.

2 portraits in the collection

Henry Crock AO

Henry 'Harry' Crock AO (1929-2018), surgeon and educator, attended school and university in Perth and studied further in Melbourne, where he won the Rector's Medal for Debating at Newman College as well as academic honours including the Gold Medal for Anatomy and the Ryan Scholarship and Medal in Medicine and Surgery.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Searle

Henry Searle (1886–1889), a sculler known as the ‘Clarence River Comet’, took up rowing as a boy as a means of getting himself and his siblings to and from school.

1 portrait in the collection

A. Henry Fullwood

Albert Henry Fullwood (1863-1930), artist, trained in art in his native Birmingham before moving to Sydney in 1883, aged 20.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Edwards

Henry (Harry) Edwards (1827–1891), actor and entomologist, arrived in Melbourne in 1853 after a short-lived attempt at studying for a career in law.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Wade

Henry Wade (1810–1854), surveyor, was trained in surveying at Dublin College before being employed as a civilian assistant by the Royal Engineers Corps.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Tim Berners-Lee

Sean Henry

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on cabinet card

Portrait of Henry Kendall, c. 1890-1894

S. Milbourn Jnr

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Jules Henry Roy Rousel

Jules Henry Roy Rousel (1897-1985) studied at the Royal Art Society School from 1912 to 1918 and the Slade School and RAS in London from 1935-1938.

2 portraits in the collection

Sir Henry Brougham Loch

Henry Brougham Loch (1827-1900), governor, served in the British military and was involved in campaigns in India and the Crimea and missions to China.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Stafford Northcote

Henry Stafford Northcote, Baron Northcote of Exeter (1846-1911), governor general, was educated at Eton and Oxford and joined the Foreign Office in his early twenties.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Samuel Sadd

Henry Sadd was born in London and exhibited engravings there before emigrating to the USA some time around 1840.

8 portraits in the collection

Hon. Sir Henry Parkes GCMG

The Hon Sir Henry Parkes GCMG (1815-1896) was five times premier of New South Wales between 1872 and 1891, and a consistent advocate for union of the colonies (Federation).

4 portraits in the collection

Richard Henry Horne

Poet Richard Henry Horne (1802–1884) arrived in Melbourne in 1852 hoping to make money on the goldfields but ended up instead in a variety of less remunerative prospects.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Henry Wylie Norman

Sir Henry Wylie Norman (1826–1904), governor and army officer, was born in London, the son of a merchant who conducted his business chiefly in India and the Caribbean.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry "Seaman" Dan, 2009

Nathan Kelly

Purchased 2010

The Cape of Good Hope ( Sir Henry Barkly)

Sir Henry Barkly GCMG KCB

Sir Henry Barkly GCMG KCB (1815-1898) started his career in business and politics before serving terms as governor of British Guiana and then Jamaica.

4 portraits in the collection

Henry John Rous

Henry John Rous (1795–1877), naval officer, racing enthusiast and politician, arrived in Sydney in February 1827 as the commander of the frigate HMS Rainbow.

1 portrait in the collection

Thomas Henry Huxley

Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895) travelled to Australia as a member of the expedition conducted by Owen Stanley on the Rattlesnake between 1846 and 1850.

2 portraits in the collection

William Henry Harvey

Portrait, watercolour, crayon, coloured pencil, gouache and fibre-tipped pen on paper

William Henry Harvey (1811-1866), botanist, formed a boyhood passion for natural history which was encouraged at Ballitore School, County Kildare.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson,

Joe Greenberg

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001

Henry Bosch, National Security Commission,

Joe Greenberg

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

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001

Aubrey Beardsley

Frederick Henry Evans

Henry Lawson, c. 1915

William Johnson

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Henry Lawson, c. 1915

William Johnson

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Portrait of Henry Vernon Crock AO, 1988

David Smith

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Henry Vernon Crock AO in memory of David Smith 2007
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Henry Baynton Somer Gullett AM MC

Portrait, pencil, charcoal, pen and ink on paper

Henry Baynton Somer ‘Jo’ Gullett AM MC (1914-1999), soldier, politician, ambassador, farmer and author, was the son of Sir Henry Gullett, who was one of the Australian official historians of the First World War.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Lawson, c. 1919

Lionel Lindsay

Purchased 2010

Henry Lawson, 1915

William Johnson

Purchased 2009

Henry Reynolds, 2012

Dave Tacon

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

George Trott (George Henry Stevens (Harry) Trott, member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team)

George Henry Stevens Trott

George Henry Stevens (Harry) Trott (1866–1917) was the captain of the Australian cricket team which toured England and then to the USA and New Zealand from June to November 1896.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Wade, c. 1841

Portrait, oil on paperboard

Gift of the Wade and Hannah families 2013

Henry (Harry) Donnan (member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team), 1896

H Parker Rolfe

Portrait, albumen photograph on cabinet card

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

Henry Fullwood (Uncle Remus), 1919

George Lambert

Portrait, pencil on paper

Gift of Denis Savill 2017. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Henry Krips, n.d.

Louis Kahan AO

Portrait, pen and ink on music sheet paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Lily Kahan 2017
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Henry Lingham, early 1900s

Mendelssohn of Melbourne

Portrait, sepia toned carbon print on card

Purchased with funds provided by Graham Smith 2009

Henry Edwards, c. 1874

Bradley and Rulofson

Portrait, albumen photograph on cabinet card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Henry Mayer, 1965

Hugo Wolfsohn

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Elaine Mayer and Ms Vicky Mayer 2011

Henry Mayer, 1965

Hugo Wolfsohn

Portrait, etching on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Mrs Elaine Mayer and Ms Vicky Mayer 2011

Henry Lawson, 1919

Lionel Lindsay

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ted and Gina Gregg 2011

Henry Baynton Somer ‘Jo’ Gullett

Recorded 1990

Henry Figueira, Glebe Island Bridge, Sydney

Henry Figueira, Glebe Island Bridge, Sydney, 1995 (printed 2000)

Portrait, oil on galvanised iron

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
The series 'David Moore: From Face to Face' was acquired as a gift of the artist and with financial assistance from Timothy Fairfax AC and L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2001.

Young Mo (Roy Rene), 1977

Martin Sharp

Gift of Richard Wherrett 1998. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Susan Lord, c. 1840

Purchased 2015

Martha Kermode, c. 1840

Purchased 2008. The original frame for this work was donated to the National Portrait Gallery of Australia by the National Gallery of Victoria 2009.

Robert Kermode, c. 1840

Purchased 2008. The original frame for this work was donated to the National Portrait Gallery of Australia by the National Gallery of Victoria 2009.

Major Thomas Lord, c. 1840

Purchased 2015

Carol Jerrems, 1973

Henry Talbot

Portrait, enamel on copper plate

Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2015

Portrait of William Manning, c. 1821

Henry Bone

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by the Sid and Fiona Myer Family Foundation 2017

Political Cartooning

Portrait story

An interview with cartoonist Ron Tandberg about the tradition of caricature.

Sir Henry Barkly

Portrait story

An interview with former National Portrait Gallery Director, Andrew Sayers, who describes the portrait of Sir Henry Barkly by Thomas Clark.

'The crimson thread of kinship' Henry Parkes

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

Nelson Illingworth

Portrait, painted terracotta

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

Henry Bolte, 1969

Les Tanner, Gus McLaren

Portrait, glazed ceramic

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2004

Henry Parkes, 1892

H. Walter Barnett

Portrait, platinum photograph

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Sir Henry Barkly, c. 1863

Batchelder & O'Neill

Portrait, albumen photograph carte de visite on card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Portrait of Henry Hopkins, c. 1845

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright

Portrait, watercolour on paper

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2013

Portrait of His Excellency Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Victoria

Portrait of His Excellency Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Victoria, c. 1864

Thomas Clark

Portrait, albumen silver photograph

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by The Ian Potter Foundation 2007

Henry Chamberlain Russell and family at Sydney Observatory

Henry Chamberlain Russell and family at Sydney Observatory, c. 1895

Charles Bayliss

Gift of Joanna Russell Maher (née Windeyer) 2018

Sir Henry Parkes, c. 1889

Portrait, glass plate positive

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Adrian McGlusky 2013

Henry Parkes, 1900

Percy Spence

Portrait, pencil and pastel over brown ink wash on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Thomas Henry Huxley, c. 1870

Maull & Co Photographers

Portrait, carte de visite photograph

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2013

William Baker Ashton, First Governor of Adelaide Gaol

William Baker Ashton, First Governor of Adelaide Gaol, c. 1849

Henry H. Glover

Portrait, watercolour on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Matthew Burnett, c. 1865

Portrait, steel engraving on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

The Hon. Sir Francis Forbes, c. 1860

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

The Hon. Sir James Dowling, c. 1860

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on cabinet card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Edward Hargraves, c. 1884

Henry King

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Douglas Mawson, 1933

Henry James Haley

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Gareth Mawson Thomas and Pamela Karran-Thomas of the Mawson family 2010
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Jane Mander Jones, 1853

Henry Robinson Smith

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Gift of Susanna de Vienne, Sarah Wood and David Lloyd Jones 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

The Honorable Sir Frederick Darley, c. 1887

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on brown cardboard presentation mount

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

J.H. Roy Rousel, 1915

Appleby Studio

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Richard King 2008
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

David Jones, 1853

Henry Robinson Smith

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Gift of Susanna de Vienne, Sarah Wood and David Lloyd Jones 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

JH Roy Rousel, 1915

Teslar Studios

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on brown cardboard presentation mount

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Richard King 2008
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Henry Squires, c. 1861

Dalton's Royal Photographic Gallery

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite, hand coloured on card

Purchased 2009

George Trott (George Henry Stevens (Harry) Trott, member of the 1896 Australian Cricket Team), 1896

H Parker Rolfe

Portrait, albumen photograph on cabinet card

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

William Henry Harvey, c. 1850

Thomas Herbert Maguire

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

A Low Comedian. "Keep your eye on your Father" [Henry Richard Harwood], 1874

Tom Durkin, The Weekly Times

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

Private practice

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2008

David Smith portrayed Dr Henry Crock without the accoutrements of an orthopaedic surgeon, adding to the National Portrait Gallery's collection of eminent Australian medical practitioners.

H. B. Gullett, c. 1939

Nora Heysen AM

Portrait, pencil on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the family in memory of Penne Hackforth-Jones 2014

H. Searle Professional Champion Sculler of the World (Henry Searle), 1889

Antoine Fauchery, Richard Daintree

Purchased 2014

Sir Henry Barkly KCB, Governor of the Colony of Victoria (Plate 1)

Sir Henry Barkly KCB, Governor of the Colony of Victoria (Plate 1), 1858

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on paper laid on cardboard

Purchased 2014

Sir James Martin, c. 1880s

Henry Samuel Sadd after Freeman Brothers

Carlo Pellegrini, Vanity Fair Magazine

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

Men of the Day No.19 "A great Med'cine-Man among the Inqui-ring Redskins" (Thomas Henry Huxley), 1871

Batchelder & Company Photo

Purchased 2015

Richard Henry Horne, mid 1860s

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

The Australian Commonwealth (Henry Stafford Northcote), 1904

Gift of Ronald A Walker 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Chelsea Hospital (Sir Henry Wylie Norman), 1903

Alfred Thompson, Vanity Fair Magazine

Purchased 2015

Men of the Day No. 5 "As straight as a reed" (Henry John Rous), 1870

Purchased 2015

The Cape of Good Hope ( Sir Henry Barkly), 1887

Purchased 2015

The Cape High Commissioner (Sir Henry Brougham Loch), 1894

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on paper

Gift of Ronald A Walker 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Aborigines, the last of the race, Tasmania

Aborigines, the last of the race, Tasmania, c. 1866

Henry Frith

Purchased 2006

Sammy (Samuel Wood), 1892

Henry Seppings-Wright, Vanity Fair Magazine

Thomas Atkinson, Samuel Mullen after Henry Weigall Jnr

Purchased 2010

The Right Reverend Lord Bishop of Melbourne (Dr. Charles Perry)

The Right Reverend Lord Bishop of Melbourne (Dr. Charles Perry), 1876

Portrait, coloured chalk with black ink highlight on artist board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

His Royal Highness Prince Henry William Frederick Albert, Duke of Gloucester (Governor General of Australia)

His Royal Highness Prince Henry William Frederick Albert, Duke of Gloucester (Governor General of Australia), 1943-1944

Charles Wheeler

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2019

The considered life

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2010

Andrew Sayers asks whether a portrait can truly be the examination of a life.

William John Wills, 2nd in command of the Victorian Expedition

William John Wills, 2nd in command of the Victorian Expedition, 1860-1861

Henry Samuel Sadd, Fergusson & Mitchell, Melbourne after Thomas Adams Hill

Henry Samuel Sadd, Fergusson & Mitchell, Melbourne after Thomas Adams Hill

Purchased with funds provided by Ross A Field 2007

Robert O'Hara Burke, Leader of the Victorian Expedition

Robert O'Hara Burke, Leader of the Victorian Expedition, 1860-1861

Purchased with funds provided by Ross A Field 2007

The golden girls: Jodie Henry, Lisbeth 'Libby' Trickett (née Lenton), Giaan Rooney, Alice Mills, Brooke Hanson, Leisel Jones

The golden girls: Jodie Henry, Lisbeth 'Libby' Trickett (née Lenton), Giaan Rooney, Alice Mills, Brooke Hanson, Leisel Jones, 2004

Robin Sellick

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Marianne Egan and her children Gertrude Evans Cahuac and Henry William Cahuac

Marianne Egan and her children Gertrude Evans Cahuac and Henry William Cahuac, 1857

Purchased with funds provided by the Liangis family 2014

Society of Artists Selection Committee, 1907

Henry King

Unknown artist Publisher Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News

Purchased 2008

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882, page 2

Henry Moore, Much Hadham, Hertfordshire, c. 1955 (printed 2000)

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2009

Fits of delicacy and despair

Henry Mundy's portraits flesh out notions of propriety and good taste in a convict colony.

The Catholic Hierarchy of Australia, 1869

Archibald McDonald, Henry Samuel Sadd

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882

'The Australian Cricketers' from The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News June 1882, 1882

Portrait, engravings on paper

Purchased 2009

The Last Picture Show (Lewis Morley and Henry Talbot), 1999

Lewis Morley

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2003
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention, Sydney 1891 from Australasia Illustrated, 1891

Portrait, engraving on paper (4 sheets)

Purchased 2009

Terrace Room Two

Spaces

The eastern side of the Terrace Room is perfect for a breakfast or lunch, workshop or planning day.

Terrace Room One

Spaces

The western side of the Terrace Room is perfect for a breakfast or lunch, a workshop or planning day.

King Henry VIII

Unknown artist

Anthonis Mor (Antonio Moro)

Terrace Room

Spaces

The Terrace Room opens onto a north facing, outdoor heated terrace with lovely views.

Though initially developed by physicians, phrenology was taken up by certain non-medical practitioners who applied the theory to social questions such as education and criminal reform.

Sir Henry Lee

The Dissecting Room

Joanna Gilmour accounts for Australia’s deliciously ghoulish nineteenth century criminal portraiture.

Dining room

Michael Pham

My room, 2015

by Anna Sinclair

Marty's living room

Benny Capp

Dickinson Monteath Studio

The Dickinson Monteath Studio operated at 296 Collins Street Melbourne during the 1930s and into the 1940s.

1 portrait in the collection

Cyril Henschke in his tasting room at Keyneton

Cyril Henschke in his tasting room at Keyneton, 1968

Douglass Baglin

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph, black ink on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

Miscellaneous Obsessions #1, My Living Room, Bondi

Miscellaneous Obsessions #1, My Living Room, Bondi, 2000

William Yang

Purchased 2022

Hana, Bobby and Mica in the lounge room

Lisa Sorgini

H B. Hall

Henry Bryan Hall grew up in England and began his trade as an apprentice to the engravers Benjamin Smith and Henry Meyer.

1 portrait in the collection

An international troupe of two

It's Complicated

Office romance

The way out is the way through, 2010

by Richard Martin

Jeffrey Smart, Tuscany, June 8, 2011

by Dave Tacon

Blue Wolf, 2014

by Imogen Henry

Finalist, MDPA 2014

Conference or seminar

We can tailor our spaces to suit your conference, seminar or forum.

Our only concern is the void, 2013

by Nik Lee

Winner, MDPA 2013

Bradley and Rulofson

Bradley & Rulofson was a partnership between photographers Henry W Bradley (1813–1891), a native of North Carolina, and Canadian-born William H Rulofson (1826–1878).

1 portrait in the collection

Mashman Bros Ltd

Portrait, cast plaster, painted

Mashman Bros Ltd was established by William and Henry Mashman in Sydney in 1885.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir George Reid, c. 1895

Nelson Illingworth

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2016

Geoffrey Rush, 2006

by William Yang

A G Stephens, c. 1910 (printed later)

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Renata Pari-Lewis and Jess Hill

It's really strange to see myself portrayed like that, because when you have those private moments it's only you having that private moment to yourself.

Portrait 27

March - May 2008

Magazine

This issue of Portrait Magazine feature Lucian Frued, John Witzig, colonial death portraits, William Kinghorne, Henry Crock, and more.

G. H. Dancey

George Henry Dancey began his career as a stained glass designer in the UK and Australia, but ended it as the chief cartoonist for Melbourne Punch over 23 years to 1919..

1 portrait in the collection

Lady Mary Hay

The ‘Mad Dentist of Wynyard Square’ in court, 18 December 1865

Lady Hay, née Chalmers (c. 1806-1892) was reported at the time of her death to have been about ten years older than Hay.

1 portrait in the collection

Henry Louis Bertrand, ca. 1865 photographed by the Milligan Brothers. Collection of the State Library of NSW

A passion eating into your vitals

The salacious and sordid details of Henry Kinder’s death transfixed Sydneysiders with a case combining murder with seduction, mesmerism, blackmail and poisoning.

Caroline Barton, 2006

by Jim Rolon

Catherine in black silk gown, 2014

by Chris Budgeon

G Ziegler

Very little is known as yet about the artist G Ziegler, who may have been related to the painter Henry Bryan Ziegler.

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of Ingvar Kenne, 2012

by Simon Harsent

Stuart, 2008

by David Finnegan

Lunch or dinner

Along with a meal in an elegant space, your guests may also enjoy portraits of notable Australians.

Not so remote, 2014

by Philip Myers

William Barak

Hon. Edward Cohen

Goupil & Cie after Carl Kahler

Edward Aaron Cohen (1822–1877), merchant, politician and community leader, came to Australia with his mother and nine siblings in 1833, his father, Henry, having been transported to New South Wales that year.

1 portrait in the collection

The Lawn at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day

The Lawn at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day, c. 1889

Portrait, photogravure on paper

Purchased 2009

Alan Mitchell

Alan Mitchell is based in Melbourne and specialises in room set photography.

4 portraits in the collection

Shaymaa, 2017

by Stuart Miller

My father the artist, 2009

by Jason McCarthy

A change of Federal Government, 2007

by Mark Arundel

Tom Durkin, The Weekly Times

A Commissioner of Customs "Faithful to Francis" [The Hon. Edward Cohen M.L.A.], 1874

Portrait, lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2016

Yvonne Denise Kenny, 1999 (printed 2022)

Polly Borland

Purchased 2022

Alfred George Stephens

Alfred George Stephens (1865–1933), editor, journalist and publisher, was born and educated in Toowoomba.

1 portrait in the collection

Paul, Bankstown, 2016

by Lyndal Irons

Gwendolene Pratt

Gwen Pratt FRAS (b.1917) is a traditional painter and portraitist in oil, watercolour and pastel.

1 portrait in the collection

In another land

Geoff Harvey

The Honourable Bob Hawke savouring a strawberry milkshake, 2017

by Harold David

The Queen of Deakin, 2017

by Julia Ann Cameron

Blue light hypnosis

Jill Velinos

Paul Gosney

Paul Gosney, a Sydney-based photographer has worked for eighteen years photographing people, lifestyle, food, still life, interiors and architecture.

1 portrait in the collection

Sisters or Friends

Emma Armstrong-Porter

Luther Cora

Yeah, so it's my daughter. So, I shot this last year, I think on the Gold Coast, we had a little lockdown period, couple of lockdown period.

Forget me not

Jennifer Blau

William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp

Previous exhibition, 2009

William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp (1872-1938), governor, was appointed to the position of Governor of NSW in 1899.

1 portrait in the collection

Wendy drunk 11pm, 1983 by Brett Whiteley

Idle Hours

Idle hours is an exhibition of luxurious beauty. Paintings, prints and drawings represent subjects in quiet moods and situations arranged according to the time of day they depict - reading, drawing, snoozing, bathing, sewing, gardening, sitting, looking, making love and spending tranquil time with companions. Works in the exhibition range from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present.

Maggie Beer

In Gallery One

Our most recent commission, the portrait of Maggie Beer by Del Kathryn Barton both combines a statuesque almost devotional likeness with a spell-binding and dream-like personalised symbology of the sitter.

Sulyn and her sisters, 2006

by Rob Walls

Very fine and very like

When did notions of very fine and very like become separate qualities of a portrait? And what happens to 'very like' in the age of photographic portraiture?

Christine (self portrait), 2014

by Christine Arnaldi

Shogun, 2015

by Joshua Morris

William Fernyhough

William Henry Fernyhough (1809-1849) was a sketcher, silhouette artist, lithographer and draughtsman who immigrated to Sydney in 1836.

13 portraits in the collection

Self portrait

Rachael Robb

Lindy Morrison

Recorded 2021

Wonder

Chloe Yongqing Zheng

Mia at home, 2019

Megan Hales

The Voyage, 2015

by Tina Fiveash

Richard Howe

Richard Howe (1st Earl Howe, 1726–1799), naval commander, served in the Royal Navy for over fifty years, seeing action in the Seven Years War, the American Wars of Independence and the French Revolutionary Wars.

1 portrait in the collection

Martha Singing

Michael Wolfe

Portrait, carte de visite photograph

Minnie Walton, c. 1874

Fradelle & Marshall

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

Jay Hynes

Dave has a brother Gavin and they live in the 'burbs and they went to school with a friend of mine.

The great echo chamber, 2017

by Dianne Jones

Dalton's Royal Photographic Gallery

Lucy Escott, c. 1861

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite, hand coloured on card

Purchased 2009

William B. Latimer

William Latimer (1851-1934) was a portrait photographer who worked in Melbourne in the latter part of the nineteenth century.

1 portrait in the collection

Favourite portraits

National Portrait Gallery staff introduce their favourite portraits from the exhibition.

Benjamin Horgan and Jake Scourfield

Elizabeth Looker

London Stereoscopic and Photographic Company

The London Stereoscopic & Photographic Company was founded in 1854 by George Swan Nottage.

2 portraits in the collection

Garth Porter

Garth Porter, keyboardist and songwriter, was half the brains behind 'Howzat', 'Summer Love' and 'Cassandra' as well as many tracks now lost in obscurity like 'I Wanna Lay With You', 'Handy Mandy' and 'Free the Sailor'.

3 portraits in the collection

Michael Hutchence

Michael Hutchence (1969-1997) lead singer of the rock band INXS was widely recognised as a charismatic live performer.

2 portraits in the collection

Mr M Walarmerpui, 2019

Ben Searcy

Dreams, 2006

by Rahima Hayes

Gemma Baxter (right view), 2019

Shea Kirk

Release, 2010

by Donna Gibbons

The Lawson

Moustaches

It’s curious that one of the writers most associated with the toughness of Australian bush life was himself not an exponent of the matted, rugged bushman sort of beard.

Reginald Jerrold-Nathan

Reginald Henry Jerrold-Nathan (1889-1979) arrived in Australia from London in 1924, having studied under John Singer Sargent and William Orpen at the Royal Academy, where he was awarded a medal for portrait painting.

2 portraits in the collection

Raynen, 2018

by Tristan Still

Breakfast

Begin your day in an elegant, convivial, award-winning building.

Dee Tang and Desmond Sweeney

Elizabeth Looker

Danelle Bergstrom

Danelle Bergstrom (b. 1957) was born in Sydney. She studied art and art education at the Julian Ashton school (1974-1979) and at Alexander Mackie CAE.

2 portraits in the collection

Elliott and Fry

Elliott & Fry, a photography studio and photographic film manufacturer, was founded in 1863 at 55-56 Baker Street, London by Joseph John Elliott and Clarence Edmund Fry.

2 portraits in the collection

Janet Tavener

Mikala is the eldest of my three daughters. I have photographed her on many an occasion. Needless to say we are both extremely at home with the practice.

Kiffy Rubbo

Kiffy Rubbo (1944-1980) was director of the Ewing and George Paton Gallery at the University of Melbourne from 1973 to 1980.

1 portrait in the collection

The Hubert

Beards

A facial hair style suggesting something of the boys’-own type of chap who seems to have had much currency in the early years of the twentieth century.

Janet Keats

Janet le Brun Brown (Keats) (1900-1985), soprano, was born on her family's property, Riggsdale, near Goulburn, but on account of frailty she was sent to live with her grandparents in Inverell, Moree and Dungog before going to boarding school in the Blue Mountains and Gosford.

1 portrait in the collection

Common ground, 2007

by Dean Sewell

Carl Kahler

Carl Kahler was born in Austria and trained in Munich, Paris and Italy, where he won several important prizes.

2 portraits in the collection

Paul Fitzgerald AM

Paul Fitzgerald AM, a Melbourne-based artist, made his career as a professional portraitist.

4 portraits 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

Livingston Hopkins

Livingston Hopkins, cartoonist, was born in Ohio and fought in the American Civil War before beginning his cartooning career in New York.

3 portraits in the collection

Rosaleen Norton

Rosaleen Norton (1917-1979) self-proclaimed witch and artist, is now best remembered as the woman whose perverse influence contributed substantially to the downfall of conductor Eugene Goossens.

1 portrait in the collection

Carol sewing, 2008

by Greg Weight

The Parkes

Beards

It wasn’t uncommon for the pro-beard fraternity of the mid nineteenth century to cite beards as a sign of wisdom on the grounds that Socrates and other ancient philosophers had worn them.

Elliot Brown

This portrait is called Jaye and it's a photo of my friend. She's a member of the Multicultural Society in Geraldton.

Kerry Walker, c. 1979

Stuart Campbell

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Estate of Stuart Campbell 2012

Fame or celebrity?

Magazine article by Rebecca Ray, 2022

A question lately cropped up in connection with Madame Melba as to whether fame and celebrity are not essentially the same thing. My feeling is that they are different.

Beau Dean Riley Smith, Wiradjuri and Gamilaraay nations, Bennelong, 2017

Space in between

Rebecca Ray goes backstage with Bangarra’s Head of Design and photographer Jacob Nash.

Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour

Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema

Magazine article by Yvette Coppersmith, 2017

Nude Self Portrait, after Rah Fizelle 2016 by Yvette Coppersmith

Observation point

Yvette Coppersmith considers the influences on her portrait painting.

Small Holdings (The Earl Carrington Baron Charles Robert Carrington)

Small Holdings (The Earl Carrington Baron Charles Robert Carrington), 1907

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite on card

Gift of Ronald Walker 2002

Lady Barkly, 1863

Batchelder & O'Neill

Purchased 2014

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.

Ola Cohn OBE

Ola Cohn OBE (1892-1964), sculptor, was born in Bendigo and studied in Melbourne and London, where Henry Moore, her lecturer in sculpture, predicted that she would progress to make 'works of a very high order'.

2 portraits in the collection

Marianne Egan

Mary Anne Egan (also Marianne or Marian, née Cheers, 1818–1857), was born in Sydney, the daughter of ex-convicts.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir William Windeyer

Sir William Windeyer (1834-1897) was a politician and judge. One of the first undergraduates to study at the University of Sydney, he developed a particular interest in education and the rights of women - he was responsible for the Married Women's Property Act of 1879, and was Founding Chairman of the university's Women's College.

4 portraits in the collection

Marcia Hines

Marcia Hines (b. 1953) sang in church choirs while growing up in Boston, Massachusetts and had her first solo singing engagement at the age of seven.

1 portrait in the collection

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

Johnstone, O’Shannessy & Co was founded in Melbourne in 1864 by Henry James Johnstone and a photographer known as ‘Miss O’Shaughnessy’, who had previously been in partnership with her mother in their own photographic business in Carlton.

12 portraits in the collection

Hera Roberts

Hera Roberts (1892-1969) was a painter, illustrator, designer, commercial artist and milliner.

1 portrait in the collection

Ahmad Sabra

We were in Gaza shooting a documentary and we had heard about the orphanages and wanted to visit and document some of the children who had lost parents during the wars in Gaza.

Livingston Hopkins, n.d.

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2008

Dream date delivers destiny

Passion

The perfect match

Kim, 2006

by Lisa Garland

Portrait, etching on paper

Self portrait, 1894

Livingston Hopkins

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased with funds provided by Ross A Field 2008

Reveries

Photography and mortality

Previous exhibition, 2007

Featuring works by Australian and New Zealand photographers from the late 1970s up to the present day Reveries focuses on images made in the presence of or consciousness of death.

Richard Divall OBE in the church mantle of the Order of Malta

Richard Divall AO OBE

Frà Professor Richard Divall AO OBE (1945–2017), conductor, composer and scholar, grew up in Manly and was educated at Manly Boys’ High School.

1 portrait in the collection

D. H. Souter

David Henry Souter (1862-1935) was a cartoonist, painter and art editor.

2 portraits in the collection

Betina Fauvel-Ogden

Betina Fauvel-Ogden was born in Adelaide and lives and works in Melbourne.

2 portraits in the collection

Sydney (Sir Daniel Cooper), 1882

Percy Leason's Aboriginal Portraits

Gift of Mr Ronald Walker 2001

William Johnson (1873—1948) by Percy Leason

Recognition

Previous exhibition, 1999

Originally conceived as an anthropological record, Percy Leason’s powerful 1934 portraits of Victorian Aboriginal people are today considered to be a highlight of 20th century Australian portraiture

Major General Alan Stretton, 1987

Gwendolene Pratt

Portrait, oil on canvas laid on composition board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Stretton family 1999
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Fetteresso (Sir Robert Duff), 1883

Francois Verheyden, Vanity Fair Magazine

Purchased 2015

Ola Cohn, 1961

Jean Goldberg

Rhonda Sharpe, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2002

Girl with Big Stick, Cooloman and Bird, 2022

Portrait, soft sculpture made with recycled woollen blankets, bush dye, wool, cotton, feathers

Purchased 2023

My Two Lovely Faces Looking at Each Other and Smiling for Love, 2022

Rhonda Sharpe, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists

Portrait, soft sculpture made with recycled woollen blankets, bush dye, wool, cotton, feathers

Purchased 2023

Rolf de Heer

Portrait, watercolour on paper

Rolf de Heer (b. 1951) was born in Heemskerk, Holland, and migrated to Australia with his family in 1959.

1 portrait in the collection

George and Jemima Billet with family, c. 1852

C.H.T. Costantini

Purchased 2016

The Capel Family

Cornelius Johnson

Hera Roberts, 1936

Max Dupain OBE

Gift of Rex Dupain 2003. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

John Gaden AM

John Gaden AM (b. 1941), actor, studied arts and law at the University of Sydney, but when he joined the Sydney University Players, he abandoned his other pursuits for the stage.

1 portrait in the collection

Cocktail reception

associated with Nicholas Hilliard

We can provide a stunning, sophisticated space for your cocktail reception.

Queen Elizabeth I

John Brack

John Brack (1920–1999), artist, grew up in Melbourne and studied at the National Gallery School at night while working as a junior insurance clerk.

9 portraits in the collection

Athol Shmith, 1985

Michel Lawrence

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 1999

Governor Sir Robert Duff with Lady Duff, Lord Hopetoun and Vice-Regal Party

Sir Robert William Duff

Sir Robert William Duff (1835–1895) was governor of New South Wales from May 1893 until March 1895.

2 portraits in the collection

Thomas Phillips

Thomas Phillips was born in Dudley, Warwickshire and initially trained as a glass painter before moving to London, aged 20, with a letter of introduction to the painter Benjamin West.

6 portraits in the collection

Gustavus Brooke

Gustavus Vaughan Brooke (1818-1866), actor, was a seasoned theatre performer by his early teens; at fourteen, he played Richard III.

1 portrait in the collection

Noel McGrowdie, 1957 (printed 2003)

Ern McQuillan OAM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2003

John Schaeffer AO - art collector and philanthropist

John Schaeffer AO - art collector and philanthropist, 2014

Evert Ploeg

Edward Scriven, J B Ball & J DeCamp after Sir Thomas Lawrence

Purchased with funds provided by Harold Mitchell AC

Rt. Honourable Lord Hawkesbury, 1808

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Ted and Gina Gregg 2012

The 1890s to the 1940s

Mo and beard timeline

Although the tough, weathered, hard-drinking bushmen of the kind mythologised by writers like Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson are popularly associated with the character of late nineteenth century Australia, it was also a time when alternative ideas about identity began to come into play.

Aussies All

Rennie Ellis photographs the self-proclaimed 'Witch of Kings Cross'.

The Derby Day at Flemington, c. 1890

Carl Kahler, Goupil & Cie

Portrait, photogravure on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Layla 2020 Veronica Watson, pencil on paper. Layla 2020 Sarah McEwan, fabric, acrylic on MDF. Self portrait 2020 Layla Bacayo, drypoint on paper. Image: Sarah McEwan

Mash-up

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2022

Penelope Grist delves into an insightful portraiture exhibition that asks: How do three artists see the same sitter?

Sir William Charles Windeyer, 1892

Tom Roberts

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

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

Interiors

Christopher Chapman previews the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009.

John Le Gay Brereton

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on paper

John Le Gay Brereton junior (1871–1933), writer and academic, was born in Sydney, the son of a doctor, also John, who had emigrated to Australia in the late 1850s.

1 portrait in the collection

Theresa and James Laidley Mort, 1844

William Nicholas

Gift of the Mort family 2009

The Tichborne Claimant (Arthur Orton), c. 1872

Maull & Co Photographers

Portrait, albumen silver carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2001

Centenary of ANZAC

Just now we pause to mark the centenary of ANZAC, the day when, together with British, other imperial and allied forces, the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps landed at Gallipoli at the start of the ill-starred Dardanelles campaign.

Rolf de Heer, Adelaide, SA, 2004

John Elliott

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

Rev. Edward Puckle

Portrait, watercolour and collage on paper

The Reverend Edward Puckle (c. 1800-1898), Anglican clergyman, took holy orders in Exeter and officiated in Cornwall before sailing on the Randolph to Canterbury, NZ in 1850.

1 portrait in the collection

An evening at Yarra Cottage, Port Stephens

An evening at Yarra Cottage, Port Stephens, 1857

Maria Brownrigg

Purchased 2017

Jack Charles

Recorded 2022

Maritime disaster leaves poignant picture

Devotion

Absence rends the heart asunder

Will Dyson

Portrait, charcoal heightened with white chalk on paper

Will (William Henry) Dyson, cartoonist, caricaturist, writer and draughtsman, was born in Alfredtown, near Ballarat, and studied for a short time in Melbourne, where he worked closely with his older brother Ambrose.

11 portraits in the collection

Sir Sidney Kidman, 1932

Samuel Woolf

Purchased 2009

Jean Shepeard

Jean Shepeard was an actress and artist who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

1 portrait in the collection

Governor Sir Robert Duff with Lady Duff, Lord Hopetoun and Vice-Regal Party, 1893

Kerry & Co

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2014

William Nicholas

William Nicholas was born near London and is believed to have trained with English printmaker A.M Huffam.

2 portraits in the collection

Rosie Batty

Recorded 2017

The Honourable J.J. Carlton with Cravat, 2000

Esther Erlich

Gift of an anonymous donor 2001. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Raelene Sharp

Portrait, pastel and gouache on paper laid down on backing sheet

Raelene Sharp (b. 1957), artist, was born in Melbourne and began her career as a graphic artist in advertising.

2 portraits in the collection

Ann Mary Windeyer, 1847

G Ziegler

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Joanna Russell Maher (née Windeyer) 2018

Study for John Bell as King Lear, 1998-2001

Nicholas Harding

Portrait, ink, charcoal and conté on paper

Gift of the artist 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Madame Melba, 1922

Harold Cazneaux

Portrait, etching, hand coloured on paper

Purchased 2015

In the most correct style

Nearest & Dearest

Desirable outcomes, undesirable origins

The great South Sea caterpillar transformed into a Bath Butterfly (Sir Joseph Banks)

The great South Sea caterpillar transformed into a Bath Butterfly (Sir Joseph Banks), 1795 (printed 1851)

James Gillray

Gift of Douglas Stewart Fine Books 2013

Eric Westbrook

Portrait, conté pencil and pastel on paper

Eric Westbrook was the Director of the National Gallery of Victoria from 1956 to 1973.

1 portrait in the collection

Study for a portrait of Alex Wodak, 2003

Nick Mourtzakis

Gift of Dr Jack Wodak 2006. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Thomas Archbold, Durham, 1826 by John Dempsey

Street fare

The late Georgian and early Victorian working classes often bought their food in ale-houses, chop-houses and ‘penny pie shops’, or purchased their meals day after day in the streets.

Simon Harsent

I like to think I'm an artist who uses photography as my medium, but I work commercially as a photographer and it's my full time occupation so I guess that defines me as a photographer or maybe a commercial artist?

New South Wales (Earl Beauchamp), 1899

Gift of Ronald A Walker 2009. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Sir Richard Owens

Portrait, oil on canvas on board

Sir Richard Owen (1804–1892), naturalist, anatomist and palaeontologist, was born in Lancaster and apprenticed to surgeon-apothecaries there before completing his studies in medicine in Edinburgh and London.

1 portrait in the collection

Mary Ware, c. 1854

Robert Dowling

Purchased with funds provided by Mary Isabel Murphy and Rosalind Blair Murphy 2014

Maggie, 2023

Del Kathryn Barton

Portrait, synthetic polymer paint and pigment liner on French linen

Commissioned with funds provided by Hayley and James Baillie 2023

Evert Ploeg

Evert Ploeg began his career as a commercial illustrator in the mid-1980s.

7 portraits in the collection

Wedding

Allow us to paint the possibilities of your wedding reception.

Janice McIllree

Janice McIllree (nee Wakely) (1935-2022), fashion model and photographer, began her modelling career in Melbourne in 1954, having graduated from Sydney's Mannequin Academy in 1952.

4 portraits in the collection

The first Australian first-class cricket team to tour England and North America

The first Australian first-class cricket team to tour England and North America, 1878

A & G Taylor

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2013

The sculptor (George Lambert and Arthur Murch)

The sculptor (George Lambert and Arthur Murch), c. 1929

Harold Cazneaux

Purchased 2015

Portrait of Charles Blackman, 1979

Judy Cassab AO CBE

Gift of Warwick Evans 2021. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Portrait sketch of Nellie Melba, 1902

Hugh Ramsay

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on studio mount

Gift of the Mitchell Family and the Fullerton Family 2000

Mary Windeyer, c. 1891

Freeman Brothers

Gift of J.B. Windeyer 2018

Ian Frazer, 2007

Marian Drew

Commissioned 2007

Alex Wodak AM

Alex Wodak, doctor, trained at St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, then worked as a medical registrar in several London teaching hospitals before beginning research on alcoholic liver disease.

1 portrait in the collection

Meet the Artist

In its uniting of artist and sitter, the self-portrait is an intriguing facet of portraiture. The self-reflection is a format that appears to grant the viewer the assurance of revelation and intimate access to the artist’s psyche.

Robert Lowe, Viscount Sherbrooke

Robert Lowe, Viscount Sherbrooke (1811-1892), politician, studied and tutored in law at Oxford before coming to Australia in 1842.

4 portraits in the collection

George Nicholas CBE

Portrait, type C Duraflex print on paper

George Nicholas CBE (1884-1960), pharmacist and philanthropist, grew up in South Australia and Victoria.

1 portrait in the collection

Mandy Martin, 1990

Anne Zahalka

Gift of Leo Christie 2003. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

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

Helena Rubinstein in a red brocade Balenciaga gown

Crème Valaze

From lanolin to Balenciaga

Helena Rubinstein (1872‒1965) was the first self-made millionairess of modern times, and created the first publicly-listed global cosmetics corporation.

Sir Hudson Fysh KBE DFC

Tjunkaya Tapaya OAM, Tjanpi Desert Weavers

Sir Hudson Fysh KBE DFC (1895-1974) was one of Australia's great aviation administrators.

3 portraits in the collection

Ngayulu Minyma Tjanpinya, I am a Tjanpi Woman

Ngayulu Minyma Tjanpinya, I am a Tjanpi Woman, 2018

Portrait, Tjanpi (dry grass), acrylic wool, raffia, wire

Purchased 2022

Dame Mary Gilmore, c. 1938

Lyall Trindall

Purchased with funds provided by Marilyn Darling AC 2001

Jane Campion, 2009

Peter Brew-Bevan

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2005

Purchased 2011

True Stories

The story behind the creation of the portrait of Helen Garner by Jenny Sages.

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

Kerrie Lester

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2002

Kerrie Lester (1953–2016) became well-known as a portraitist for her playful, textured, highly coloured works that appeared regularly in the Archibald and Portia Geach exhibitions of the late 1980s and the 1990s.

6 portraits in the collection

Heart of Darkness

Magda Keaney talks with Bill Leak about his bold new portrait of Robert Hughes in the National Portrait Gallery collection.

George Lambert

George Lambert (1873–1930), artist, was born in St Petersburg and lived in Germany and England before coming to Australia with his family at the age of fourteen.

7 portraits in the collection

Robert Helpmann, 1969

Portrait, montage of gelatin silver photographs on paper

Purchased 1998

Almerisa, Asylumseekerscenter Leiden, March 14, 1993

Interview

Magazine article by Rineke Dijkstra, 2013

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

Sigrid Thornton, 2000

Andrew Sibley

Portrait, pencil on paper

Purchased 2010

Thomas and John Clarke, bushrangers, photographed in Braidwood Gaol

Thomas and John Clarke, bushrangers, photographed in Braidwood Gaol, 1867

Portrait, albumen silver photograph on laid down on a section cut from a nineteenth century album page

Purchased 2019

Nelson Illingworth

Magazine article by Mette Skougaard and Thomas Lyngby, 2018

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

HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, 2006 Ralph Heimans AM

Dane reign

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

Peter Skrzynecki OAM

Of Polish/Ukrainian descent, Peter Skrzynecki was born in 1945 in Germany and came to Australia with his parents in 1949.

1 portrait in the collection

Hon. Saul Samuel

Magazine article by Celina Fox, 2006

The Hon Sir Saul Samuel Bart KCMG CB (1820-1900), merchant, politician, company director and landowner, was the first Jewish legislator in New South Wales and the first Jew to become a minister of the Crown.

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of an English Woman c. 1532-5 (detail)

A new perspective

An exhibition devoted to Hans Holbein's English commissions shows the portraitist bringing across the Channel new technical developments in art - with a dazzling facility.

Helen Garner, 2004

Julian Kingma

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2006

Mary Windeyer, 1850s

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on ivory

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

A blackguard rehearsing - Max Cullen, 2001

David Naseby

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2006

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Nigel Naseby 2007
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Ingres in Paris

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres was one of the greatest portrait painters in history.

Barton and Watson, 1902

G. H. Dancey

Portrait, pen and ink on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012

John Dease

Portrait, cast bronze relief medallion

Conly John Paget Dease (1906-1979), actor and broadcaster, spent thirty years as one of the signature voices of the ‘Golden Age’ of Australian radio.

1 portrait in the collection

Charles Joseph La Trobe, 1853

Thomas Woolner

Purchased 2006

Carlotta, Kings Cross (Les Girls), 1970-1971

Rennie Ellis

Purchased 2006

Shane Warne AO

Shane Warne AO (1969–2022) is the most successful wicket taker in Australia's Test history.

1 portrait in the collection

Les Tanner

Les Tanner was one of Australia’s best-known caricaturists. Born in Glebe, New South Wales, he is said to have taken up drawing portraits as early as age five, and as a teenager contributed cartoons to the school newspaper.

4 portraits in the collection

Mary Windeyer

Mary Windeyer (née Bolton, 1837-1912), women's rights campaigner, was one of the nine children of Robert Thorley Bolton, a clergyman who emigrated to New South Wales in 1839.

3 portraits in the collection

Little Darlings Youth Portrait Prize 2023

Little Darlings is for primary and secondary students, with four separate categories across Kindergarten to Year 12. Responding to the theme ‘Me and my place’, students painted, drew, photographed, printed or combined all of these to make their portrait.

George Lambert, c. 1929

Annie May Moore

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

Margaret Olley, 1991

Greg Weight

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

Sir Rupert Hamer AC KCMG ED

Sir Rupert ‘Dick’ Hamer AC KCMG (1916-2004) was premier of Victoria from 1972 to 1981.

1 portrait in the collection

Peter Elliott AM

Peter Elliott AM (1927–2014) was an obstetrician, gynaecologist and gynaecological oncologist as well as a significant art collector and patron.

6 portraits in the collection

Christopher Brennan

Christopher Brennan (1870–1932), poet, was born to Irish parents in Sydney.

2 portraits in the collection

Meredith Rogers

Meredith Rogers, theatre director and academic, studied at the University of Melbourne and worked between 1974 and 1979 with Kiffy Rubbo at the Ewing and George Paton Galleries.

1 portrait in the collection

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

Portraits for Posterity

Australian Painters Photographed by R. Ian Lloyd

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.

Studio

Previous exhibition, 2007

Studio: Australian Painters Photographed by R

Frank Hinder

Previous exhibition, 2009

Francis Henry Critchley Hinder (1906-1992) was a pioneer of abstract art in Australia.

18 portraits in the collection

National Youth Self Portrait Prize

NYSPP 2009

An annual event, the National Youth Self Portrait Prize seeks to encourage young people to embrace self portraiture and its expressive possibilities.

Self portrait, c. 1948

John Brack

Portrait, conté crayon on paper

Purchased with funds provided by Tim Fairfax AC 2010

Sigrid Thornton AO

Magazine article by Helene Ladomirska, 2006

Sigrid Thornton AO (b. 1959), actor, has been a household name since her performance in the box-office hit The Man from Snowy River in 1981.

1 portrait in the collection

A quiet moment

As Bryan Westwood’s portrait of Brian Dunlop hangs adjacent to Brian Dunlop’s portrait of the philanthropist Dr Joseph Brown AO OBE, we see the artist of one work as the subject of the other.

Marilyn Rowe AM OBE

Marilyn Rowe AM OBE (b. 1946), former prima ballerina, was the first graduate of The Australian Ballet School to become its director.

2 portraits in the collection

Robert Hannaford AM

Robert Hannaford AM (b. 1944), a largely self-taught artist, grew up on his family farm near the small South Australian town of Riverton before working as political cartoonist for the Adelaide Advertiser from 1964 to 1967.

6 portraits in the collection

Kate Grenville AO

Kate Grenville AO (b. 1950), novelist, studied in Sydney and worked as a film editor before spending several years in the UK and Europe, where she began to write.

2 portraits in the collection

Marcia Langton, 2013

Juno Gemes

Purchased 2015

Jessie Street, 1929

Reginald Jerrold-Nathan

Gift of the Street family and the Jessie Street National Women's Library 2010

The Waxworks

Waxworks were among the various types of entertainment venue to emerge in Australian cities in the mid-nineteenth century.

Ivy Shore

Portrait, digital print on watercolour paper

Ivy Shore (1915–1999), painter, was born in Melbourne, daughter of a South Australian suffragette, Elka, and engineer John Williams.

2 portraits in the collection

Barry Jones, 1998

Tristan Humphries

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2000

Lisa McCune

Recorded 2022

Jacob Nash, 2017

Ingvar Kenne

Magazine article by Tim Bonyhady, 2016

Gift of the artist 2020. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Self Portrait with sun damage, 2014 by Andrew Sayers.

At easel

Tim Bonyhady recalls his experience as sitter for his close friend and former National Portrait Gallery Director, the late Andrew Sayers.

Shigeo Sawada, c. 1915

Kan Studios

Gift of Ron Wylie 2007

Vincent Fantauzzo

Vincent Fantauzzo (b. 1977), award-winning portrait artist, was born in England and grew up in Melbourne's northern suburbs.

2 portraits in the collection

Helen Garner

Helen Garner (b. 1942), author and journalist, is one of Australia's best-known writers.

8 portraits in the collection

Dame Mary Gilmore DBE

Previous exhibition, 2000

Dame Mary Gilmore DBE (1865–1962), poet, journalist and social reformer, was born near Goulburn and had an itinerant childhood as her father moved the family around New South Wales for work.

3 portraits in the collection

Monochromatic Self-Portrait, 2000 by Genevieve Preston

Headspace 1

Headspace showcases portrait art produced by secondary students from Year 7 to Year 12 in Government, Catholic and Independent schools in Canberra and its surrounding regions extending to Wollongong, Deniliquin, Leeton, Crookwell, Bombala, Narooma and Albury

Thomas Sutcliffe Mort and his wife Theresa

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.

Jeremiah Ware

Jeremiah Ware (1792–1878) arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1822 with his wife, Mary (née Brooks, c.

1 portrait in the collection

Mary Ware

Previous exhibition, 2005

Jeremiah Ware (1792–1878) arrived in Van Diemen’s Land in 1822 with his wife, Mary (née Brooks, c.

1 portrait in the collection

The World of Thea Proctor

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

Dame Nellie Melba,

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on cabinet card

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2007

Paula Dawson AM

Paula Dawson AM (b. 1954), artist and university lecturer, is an internationally recognised pioneer in the field of holography.

1 portrait in the collection

Relaxed mornings

Visual Stories

Access support for a visiting the Gallery before the general 10:00am opening time.

Wesley Enoch and David McAllister, 2020

Peter Brew-Bevan

Purchased with funds provided by Alan Dodge AM and Neil Archibald 2021

Latai Taumoepeau and Justin Shoulder, 2014, printed, augmented 2023 from the series No Human Being Is Illegal (in all our glory) 2014–18 Deborah Kelly

A stitch in time: Participating in portraiture

Author and embroidery enthusiast Emma Batchelor shares her experience of joining a sewing circle with Portrait23: Identity artist Deborah Kelly.

The Swiss Studios, Sydney

The Swiss Studios opened in King Street, Sydney in early 1898, operating from a building described as a 'pleasing reminder of one of those delightful old Swiss chalets, which one always associates with Alpine travel.' The elaborate establishment boasted a first-floor reception room, 'beautifully decorated and luxuriously furnished', 'tastefully arranged dressing rooms, one for ladies and the other for gentlemen', and a 'lofty, cool and well-lit gallery' where 'the best artists in the photographic line' were at work.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir John Young

Magazine article by Mandy Martin, 2005

Sir John Young, 1st Baron Lisgar (1807-1876), governor of New South Wales from 1861 to 1867, was the son of a director of the East India Co.

1 portrait in the collection

A Life in Service

Artist Mandy Martin describes the creation of her portrait of Aldo Giurgola, principal architect of Australia's Parliament House.

Mrs Cameron and the V&A

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2003

In March 2003 Magda Keaney travelled to London to join the photography section of the Victoria & Albert Museum for three months.

Ron Robertson-Swann OAM

Ron Robertson-Swann (b. 1941), sculptor, teacher and painter, studied at the National Art School (NAS) under Lyndon Dadswell in the late 1950s.

1 portrait in the collection

Frank Gardiner

Portrait, ceramic and cork

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

1 portrait in the collection

Billy Hughes bottle stopper, 1911-1921

Mashman Bros Ltd

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

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.

George Perry

George William Perry (1824–1900) was born in London and arrived in Victoria via South Africa around 1852.

2 portraits in the collection

George Johnston OBE

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

George Henry Johnston OBE (1912-1970), journalist and novelist, grew up in Elsternwick, a working-class suburb of Melbourne.

1 portrait in the collection

Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson AC CVO MBE

Spikes: then and now

As part of its ongoing program of commissions of portraits of prominent Australians, the National Portrait Gallery has unveiled a portrait of Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson by South Australian artist Avril Thomas.

The First Ministry under Responsible Government in New South Wales

The First Ministry under Responsible Government in New South Wales, 1856

Freeman Brothers

Portrait, albumen silver photograph

Purchased with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 2009

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

The Australian Cricket Team 1882

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2016

The Australian cricket team of 1882 was the third side to tour England and the team whose defeat of England at The Oval in August of that year initiated the 'The Ashes' Test series.

1 portrait in the collection

Mrs NR Mackintosh (Anne) by Ruth Hollick

Natural, artistic and unselfconscious

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

Supporters

$5,000 - $9,999

Honour board

Sir John Gorton GCMG AC CH

Previous exhibition, 2018

The Rt Hon Sir John Gorton GCMG AC CH (1911–2002) was the nineteenth prime minister of Australia and the only senator yet to have served in the office.

5 portraits in the collection

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.

Kerrie Lester, 1990

Anne Zahalka

Portrait, type C Duraflex print on paper

Gift of Leo Christie 2003. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rennie Ellis

Aussies All

Magazine article by Anthony Browell, 2004

Rennie Ellis: Aussies All is a celebration of the life and work of the late Australian photographer Rennie Ellis.

Charmed by the Rose

Anthony Browell reminisces about meeting Rose Lindsay, the wife of Australian artist Norman Lindsay.

Sidney Nolan, Western Australia, 1962 (printed 2000)

Previous exhibition, 2008

Self Portrait (Textanude) by Arlene TextaQueen

Animated

Self Portraits Online

Animated is the National Portrait Gallery's first online exhibition.

Sir Hudson Fysh, 1950

Sir William Dobell OBE

Portrait, oil on composition board

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the Australian War Memorial in association with the Fysh family 2008

Tom Roberts

Tom Roberts (1856–1931), artist, came to Australia from England at the age of 13, but returned eight years later to study art in London.

9 portraits in the collection

Graeme Murphy AO

Graeme Murphy AO (b. 1950), choreographer and dancer, was co-artistic director of the Sydney Dance Company with his wife Janet Vernon AM for three decades.

3 portraits in the collection

Dr Gene Sherman AM

Dr Gene Sherman AM (b. 1947) is Chairman and Executive Director of Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, a family philanthropic enterprise dedicated to the public exhibition of significant contemporary art from Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

3 portraits in the collection

Peter Goldsworthy AM

Peter Goldsworthy AM (b. 1951), medical doctor and writer, was born in Minlaton, South Australia, and grew up in various country towns as his father, a school teacher, moved for work.

2 portraits in the collection

Noni Hazlehurst AM

Actor, presenter and broadcaster Noni Hazlehurst AM (b. 1953) studied drama at Flinders University in South Australia, and after graduating gained roles in the television cop shows Division 4, Homicide and Matlock Police.

2 portraits in the collection

First Australian first-class cricket team

The ‘first Australian first-class cricket team to tour England and North America’ was in fact the second Australian cricket side to contest matches internationally (a team of Indigenous players having done so in 1868), but it is considered the first official national representative team to tour overseas.

1 portrait in the collection

Egbert S. Wills

Emily Spencer Wills (1842–1925), Cedric Spencer Wills (1844–1914), Horace Spencer Wills (1847–1928), and Egbert Spencer Wills (1849–1931) the second, third, fourth, and fifth children of Horatio Wills and his wife Elizabeth, were all born at Lexington, spending their childhoods there and at Bellevue, the property acquired by Horatio Wills near Geelong in 1852.

1 portrait in the collection

Emily S. Wills

1 portrait in the collection

Horace Spencer Wills and Cedric Spencer Wills

Cedric S. Wills

1 portrait in the collection

Horace S. Wills

Previous exhibition, 2009

1 portrait in the collection

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009

In its second year at the National Portrait Gallery, and for the first time touring to other venues, the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2009 continues to present surprising perspectives on the nature of contemporary portrait photography.

Arthur Murch

Arthur Murch, artist, is best-known as a painter in a colourful cubistic style, but he was occupied with sculpture throughout his career.

8 portraits in the collection

Margel Hinder AM

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

1 portrait in the collection

Claude Spurgeon Charlick

Claude Spurgeon Charlick (1893-1974), businessman, was managing director of the Adelaide firm Charlick Ltd for nearly forty years.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Edward Wheewall Holden

Sir Edward Wheewall Holden (1885-1947), industrialist and politician, was the son of Henry Holden, industrialist and civic leader, and the grandson of James Alexander Holden, Adelaide leather and saddlery business owner.

1 portrait in the collection

Sir Lawrence Wackett, c. 1961

Sir William Dargie CBE

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Arlette Perkins daughter of Sir Lawrence Wackett 2009
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Tjunkaya Tapaya OAM

Tjunkaya Tapaya OAM (b. c 1947) is a senior Tjanpi Desert Weaver with work spanning across printmaking, ceramics and fibre-based work.

1 portrait in the collection

Radical Restraint
Justice Michael Kirby, 1998

Ralph Heimans AM

Purchased with funds provided by the Basil Bressler Bequest 2001

Stephen Murray-Smith

Previous exhibition, 2003

Stephen Murray-Smith (1922-1988), writer and editor, was educated at Geelong Grammar and the University of Melbourne before serving in New Guinea during World War 2.

1 portrait in the collection

Max Dupain

The Vintage Years

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

New partnership with Stripy Sock

5 July 2016

Archived media releases 2016

We have a new partnership with Canberra-based leading mobile application development consultancy, Stripy Sock.

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.

Stephen Murray-Smith, 1980

Fred Williams

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Lyn Williams AM 2011
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Australian Visit

Chefs, winemakers, providores

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.

Masters of Fare

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.

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright (1794-1847) is one of the most intriguing and talented figures in colonial Australian art.

4 portraits in the collection

Sir Oswald Brierly

Sir Oswald Brierly (1817–1894), marine painter and adventurer, studied art, naval architecture and navigation in England before his fascination with seafaring caused him to sign up as staff artist on the Wanderer – a schooner owned by entrepreneur Benjamin Boyd, who was about to embark on a round-the-world trip.

1 portrait in the collection

Betsy (Bessie) Lee

Previous exhibition, 2010

Betsy (Bessie) Lee Cowie (1860–1950), 'Australia's Temperance Queen', spent the early part of her life in Daylesford, Victoria, one of the five children of Henry Vickery, a butcher and miner, and his wife Emma.

1 portrait in the collection

Jenny Sages

Paths to Portraiture

The exhibition Sages examines the process of portrait making through four large-scale portraits of women by Jenny Sages, paired with intimate preparatory drawings.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2020

Previous exhibition, 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.

Uncommon Australians

The vision of Gordon and Marilyn Darling

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.

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.

Icons and imagery

Magazine article by Alison Weir, 2011

Alison Weir explores the National Portrait Gallery, London and the BP Portrait Award to find what makes a good painted portrait - past and present.

Flash

Australian Athletes in Focus

Portrait, cast bronze relief medallion

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

William Charles Wentworth, 1854

Thomas Woolner

Gift of the Simpson family in memory of Caroline Simpson OAM 2008. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Kerry Walker AM

Kerry Walker AM, actor, graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1974 and made her professional stage debut in a melée in Act 1 of Romeo and Juliet with the Australian Ballet.

1 portrait in the collection

Lady Anne Maria Barkly

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2017

Anne Maria Barkly (1838-1932) was the second wife of Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Victoria from December 1856 to September 1863.

1 portrait in the collection

Portrait of William Manning, c.1821 by Henry Bone

Of beef in burgundy

Angus Trumble reveals the complex technical mastery behind a striking recent acquisition, Henry Bone’s enamel portrait of William Manning.

Macquarie Digital Portraiture Award 2014

22 August 2014

Archived media releases 2014

Press releases for media.

Time and light

In Gallery Seven

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.

Graeme Murphy, n.d.

Stuart Campbell

Gift of the Estate of Stuart Campbell 2012

Shane Warne, 2006

Robin Sellick

Previous exhibition, 2003

Purchased 2006

Australians in Hollywood

Although perceived to be a recent phenomenon, the 'Aussie invasion' of Hollywood can actually be traced as far back as the early 1900s

To Look Within

Self Portraits in Australia

This exhibition is the first comprehensive survey of self-portraits in Australia, from the colonial period to the present

Mark Strizic

A Journey in Photography

This exhibition traces the creative output of nearly 50 years by one of Australia's landmark living photographers.

Robert Dessaix, 1998

Robert Hannaford AM

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Robert Dessaix 2000
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Stevie Wright, 2003 (printed 2005)

Gregory McBean

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2005

Bob Jenyns

Robert ‘Bob’ Jenyns (1944-2015) grew up in Victoria and gained his diploma in art from the Caulfield Institute of Technology in 1964.

1 portrait in the collection

Horatio S. Wills

Previous exhibition, 2010

Horatio Spencer Howe Wills (1811–1861), pastoralist, politician and newspaper proprietor, was born in Sydney, several months after the death of his father, Edward Spencer Wills, a merchant and shipowner who'd arrived in New South Wales under a life sentence for highway robbery in 1799.

2 portraits 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.

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.

Nellie Melba, 1898

Ernest Walter Histed

Portrait, albumen paper photograph on carte de visite

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2010

Sir John Young, c. 1862

Freeman Brothers

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2015

The fat of the land

Previous exhibition, 2017

Sir Sidney Kidman (1857-1935) is inscribed in Australian legend as the ‘Cattle King’.

Nicholas Harding

28 Portraits

Nicholas Harding: 28 portraits features paintings of Robert Drewe, John Bell and Hugo Weaving alongside gorgeously coloured recent oil portraits, delicate gouaches and bold ink and charcoal drawings.

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.

Visiting with a school group

Visual Stories

Access support for students.

Inspiration + Realisation: Jude Rae

Magazine article by Justin Paton, 2006

Justin Paton explores the latest exhibition of Jude Rae's portrait paintings.

Georg von Neumayer, c. 1860

Johnstone & Co

Previous exhibition, 2022

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

National Photographic Portrait Prize 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.

Someone to watch over you

Magazine article by Carrie Kibbler, 2013

Carrie Kibbler looks at how portraiture fits into the Australian Artbank Collection.

Thomas Woolner

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2001

Thomas Woolner, sculptor, studied first with the brothers Henry and William Behnes, painter and sculptor respectively, and later at the Royal Academy, at which he was to become professor of sculpture in his fifties.

5 portraits in the collection

String of Pearls

Andrew Sayers discusses the portrait of Dr Joan Croll AO by the Australian artist John Brack.

Oz and beyond

Magazine article by Diana Warnes, 2007

Martin Sharp fulfils the Pop art idiom of merging art and life.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2023

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2005

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.

Modern Australian Women

Close contemporaries, Thea Proctor, Margaret Preston and Grace Cossington Smith were frequently sources of inspiration and irritation to each other.

Soffritto di Lucio, 2009

Garry Shead and Adrienne Levenson

Portrait, oil on linen

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Lucio Galletto OAM 2012
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

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.

Visiting the National Portrait Gallery

Visual Stories

Access support for a general visit to the Gallery.

Arthur T. Woodward

Batchelder & Company Photo

Arthur Thomas 'A T' Woodward (1865–1943), painter and art scholar, was born in Birmingham, England.

1 portrait in the collection

Charles Summers, late 1860s

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

C.H.T. Costantini

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2006

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

The National Portrait Gallery building in twilight

On a human scale

The design concepts behind the new National Portrait Gallery building in Canberra.

Hattie Shepparde, 1872

Bardwell's Royal Studio

Portrait, carte de visite photograph

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

Martha Mary Robertson, 1866

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

Magazine article by Ben Quilty, 2010

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

Observation point

The Australian painter Ben Quilty discusses his approach to portraiture.

Gotta catch 'em all

Portrait, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Angus Trumble grabs his life jacket and rides the Pokémon GO tsunami.

Paul Capsis, 2004

Esther Erlich

Gift of the artist 2017

William St. Leonards Robertson, c. 1869

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

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

Katherine Bennett

The lady in the centre of this photograph is my partner's Granny. So we are almost directly related, and here, as with all photographic work. I am in a state of exchange though I think only directly, with one of the women!

Archbishop Michael Kelly

Five Years of National Portrait Gallery Commissions

Michael Kelly (1850-1940), Roman Catholic archbishop, was born and educated in Ireland before proceeding to the Irish College in Rome.

1 portrait in the collection

Making Portraits

The considered matching of artist to subject has produced an amazing collection of unique and original works in the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery

Sunset in the drawing room at Chesney Wold by Hablot Knight Brown

Portraiture in a Bleak House

It may seem an odd thing to do at one’s leisure on a beautiful tropical island, but I spent much of my midwinter break a few weeks ago re-reading Bleak House.

Cocky McGrath

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

Heartfelt

Magazine article by Michelle Fracaro, 2004

The portrait of Janet and Horace Keats with the spirit of the poet Christopher Brennan is brought to life by artist Dora Toovey.

Bloodlines

Michelle Fracaro describes Lionel Lindsay's woodcut The Jester (self-portrait).

Nicholas Chevalier, c. 1867

Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2006

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

Self Creation

Former National Portrait Gallery Director, Andrew Sayers recalls meeting iconic Australian artist Sidney Nolan.

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.

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.

An active and contemplative life

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2009

From Cicero through St. Augustine and Coluccio Salutati right up to the present day, we have regularly weighed the significance, respective merits and competing priorities of the “active” versus the “contemplative” life. Can they coexist?

A floorplan of the Gallery showing the location of the entrance, cafe, shop and toilets

Access

Plan your visit

The National Portrait Gallery welcomes everyone. We have a variety of inclusive programs.

The house, the horse, the wife and the offspring

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

My father-in-law watering his garden, 1986 by Davida Allen

Lovingly observed

Sarah Engledow previews the beguiling summer exhibition, Idle hours.

The Bath Butterfly

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2018

The caricaturist and engraver James Gillray's biting satires about Sir Joseph Banks.

The artist and her family, c. 1854 by Martha Berkeley

Presence and absence

The art of Australia’s colonial women painters affords us an invaluable, alternative perspective on the nascent nation-building project.

Vintage Max

Magazine article by Gael Newton, 2003

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

Top shot that

Magazine article by Gideon Haigh, 2009

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

Anna F. Walker

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

Anna Frances Walker (1830–1913), botanical artist and collector, was one of the thirteen children of Thomas Walker, a high-ranking colonial public servant, and his wife Anna Elizabeth, the daughter of merchant and landowner John Blaxland.

1 portrait in the collection

In the galleries

Christopher Chapman highlights the inaugural hang of the new National Portrait Gallery building which opened in December 2008.

Full time

Magazine article by Alistair McGhie, 2017

Alistair McGhie reminisces about three Australian rugby greats commissioned for the Portrait Gallery collection by Patrick Corrigan AM.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2018

8 March 2018

Archived media releases 2018

Images for media use will be available from 8 March 2018.

Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose, 1885-86 by
John Singer Sargent

A feast of friends

Magazine article by Richard Ormond, 2015

John Singer Sargent: a painter at the vanguard of contemporary movements in music, literature and theatre.

The boy, the bed and the gun

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2016

Christopher Chapman contemplates the provocative performance art of Chris Burden.

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.

Skyhooks (Red Symons, Bob Starkie, Shirley Strachan, Greg Macainsh, Freddie Strauks) in Parker’s studio, Fitzroy, 1975 David Parker

Cool cool world

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2022

Penelope Grist unpacks photographs by David Parker, who captured the phenomenal emergence of the 1970s and 80s Melbourne music scene.

Australian visit in Denmark

Magazine article by Mette Skougaard, 2006

In April 2006 the National Portrait Gallery showcased Australian portraits at the Fredenksborg Castle in Denmark.

Talma Studios, Sydney

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2010

Talma Studios opened in Sydney in March 1899 in a George Street premises next door to the GPO.

1 portrait in the collection

Caroline Amelia Elizabeth
of Brunswick, 1804

Around the grounds

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.

Hop, skip, shoot

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2004

Former NPG Deputy Director, Simon Elliott talks with Ern McQuillan about his life and career as a sports photographer.

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

A reflection on conversation pieces

Archived media releases 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.

Equation of a life - a portrait of Professor Derek Denton

Equation of a life – a portrait of Derek Denton

9 September 2016

The National Portrait Gallery, has welcomed the newest portrait commission of Emeritus Professor Derek Denton AC by Evert Ploeg.

All dressed up

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2013

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

The Writer: Peter Goldsworthy, 2018

by Deidre But-Husaim

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2019

Commissioned with funds provided by Jillian Broadbent AO and Dr Helen Nugent AO 2018.

Lady Jane Grey, c.1590-1600 (also known as The ‘Streatham’ portrait) Artist unknown

The Royal she

Traversing paint and pixels, Inga Walton examines portraits of select women in Tudors to Windsors: British Royal Portraits.

John McRae

NPPP 2012 learning resource

An interview with the photographer.

Risk Assessment for groups of students

For your peace of mind

School visit information

Find out about our environment, security checks, potential hazards and more.

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.

Dr Edward MacMahon, 1959 by William Dobell

Bill and Ted's excellent portrait.

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2016

Sarah Engledow on Messrs Dobell and MacMahon and the art of friendship.

Suave

Magazine article by Annette Twyman, 2021

Charles Haddon Chambers the Australian-born playboy playwright settled permanently in London in 1880 but never lost his Australian stance when satirising the English.

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

Birds of a feather

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

Fred Hilmer, 2018

by Evert Ploeg

Magazine article by Christopher Baker, 2013

Commissioned with funds provided by Dr Helen Nugent AO 2018

Hot Scots

James Holloway describes the first portraits you encounter when entering the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

Queen Victoria, 1901

The Illustrated London News after Jean Joseph Benjamin-Constant

Portrait, photogravure on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

All there in black and white

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

The National Portrait Gallery acquired a beguiling silhouette group portrait by Samuel Metford, an English artist who spent periods of his working life in America.

Mexico from the Palace painted by ‘Maximilian Emperor'

Empirical art

Several years ago I came across this curious painting on the racks in a distant, dusty corner of the store room in the basement of the Johannesburg Art Gallery in South Africa. Since then the mystery surrounding it has never been far from my mind.

Noel McKenna

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

It’s a matter beyond dispute that in the entire history of Australian art, it’s Noel McKenna who’s painted the liveliest rendition of the head of a Chihuahua.

Portrait of a Pioneer , 1917
Violet Teague

Off her own bat

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

Helen Blaxland judging flower arrangements, c. 1940s photographer unknown

Petal to the mettle

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2019

Sarah Engledow lauds the very civil service of Dame Helen Blaxland.

Costantini's convictions

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2017

Jo Gilmour uncovers endearing authenticity in the art of a twice-transported Tasmanian.

Queen Victoria

Last Sunday I had the privilege of appearing at the Canberra Writers’ Festival in conversation with Julia Baird. The subject of our session was Julia’s recent biography, Victoria the Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman who Ruled an Empire.

A real Pratt

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

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.

Cannonical

Walter Lindrum, world-famous billiards player, was one of Australia's greatest sporting champions.

John Bell as King Lear oil on Belgian linen, 2001 by Nicholas Harding

Lear unbuttoned

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2011

Sarah Engledow steps up to the footlights and applauds the storyline behind Nicholas Harding's portraits of actor John Bell.

Desert Island Discs

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2018

I agonized over the choice of four songs to take with me to the ABC Studios for Alex Sloan’s Canberra 666 afternoon program, a sort of iteration of the old BBC Desert Island Discs.

A guy from Paris

Sarah Engledow on a foundational gallery figure who was quick on the draw.

Promise Fulfilled

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

The life and achievements of Sir Edward Holden, who is represented in the portrait collection by a bust created by Leslie Bowles.

Benny (42nd Street Series), 1979–80 by Larry Clark

City boys

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2016

Christopher Chapman immerses himself in Larry Clark’s field of vision.

A surface against which we can move, 2014 by Sam Leach

No small wonder

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

Joanna Gilmour describes how artist Sam Leach works on a small scale to grand effect.

The Coronation Theatre, Westminster Abbey: A Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, 2012

Imagination

Dr Sarah Engledow tells the story of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee portrait by Australian artist Ralph Heimans.

Joan Alone

Magazine article by Julia Gillard AC, 2015

Julia Gillard pays poignant tribute to her friend and mentor, the late Joan Kirner, Victoria’s first and only female premier.

Maria Caroline Brownrigg

Magazine article by Kylie Scroope, 2011

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

Opening of the First Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia by H.R.H. The Duke of Cornwall and York, May 9, 1901, 1903 by Tom Roberts

Empire records

Celebrates the centenary of the first national art collection, the Historic Memorials Collection, housed at Australia's Parliament House.

Virtually yours

Magazine article by Gillian Raymond, 2022

Gill Raymond on creating thought-provoking, interactive content to connect to our online community through portraiture.

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.

Like wow

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2009

Joanna Gilmour explores the life of female Australian surfing legend Isabel Letham.

Christian Waller with Baldur, Undine and Siren at Fairy Hills, 1932 by Napier Waller

Enigma

Magazine article by Dr Grace Blakeley-Carroll, 2015

Grace Carroll contemplates the curious case of Christian Waller.

Peter Wilmoth, age 12, with copies of Our World 1974 Courtesy of the author

Paper, boy

Magazine article by Peter Wilmoth, 2016

Peter Wilmoth’s boy-journalist toolkit for antagonising an Australian political giant.

Painter John Brack with Professor Alex Mitchell and Sir Garfield Barwick, c. 1977

Jozef Vissel

Magazine article by Robyn Sweaney, 2016

Gift of the Jozef Vissel 2015

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

Finding Mrs Frisby

Robyn Sweaney's quiet Violet obsession.

Goods and chattels

I have been reading systematically through the ads in the earliest issues of the Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, such a rich vein of information about certain aspects of daily life in Regency Sydney.

The mystery of Enoch Arden

Magazine article by Christine Clark, 2006

Tennyson's Enoch Arden was inspired by a story that Thomas Woolner passed on to him – but whose story and of whom?

Adam Scott: at Sanctuary Cove Golf Course

Celebrities on the field

Robin Sellick's portraits of Australian sportspeople include Harry Kewell, Adam Scott, Shane Warne, Mark Webber and John Newcombe.

A potpourri of portraits

Magazine article by Natalie Wilson, 2023

Archie 100 curator (and detective) Natalie Wilson’s nationwide search for Archibald portraits unearthed the fascinating stories behind some long-lost treasures.

Reflections on castles

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2004

Andrew Sayers describes the unique characteristics of the international band of portrait galleries.

Portrait of the artist as a young man

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2015

Dr Sarah Engledow explores the early life and career of John Brack.

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.

Home truths

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

Despite once expressing a limited interest in the self portrait, the idea of it has figured strongly in much of Tracey Moffatt's work and has done so in some of her most distinctive and compelling images.

Shakespeare to Winehouse: Icons from the National Portrait Gallery, London

Announcing Shakespeare to Winehouse

24 November 2021

Archived media releases 2021

More than eighty treasures from the National Portrait Gallery London will travel to Canberra for a once-in-a-lifetime exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from March 2022.

Shadows of light

Magazine article by Mark Haworth-Booth, 2002

Mark Haworth-Booth explains why Bill Brandt is one of the most important British photographers of the Twentieth Century.

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.

Rugby great a fine addition to Portrait Gallery Collection

21 March 2017

Archived media releases 2017

A portrait of Australian rugby great, Dr Mark Loane AM MBBS FRANZO FRACS, is the latest addition to the National Portrait Gallery’s permanent collection. The work is the final in a series of three commissioned portraits of Australian rugby luminaries funded by Gallery benefactor, Mr Patrick Corrigan AM.

The God-shaped hole

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2010

Exploring the photographs of Martin Schoeller, Michael Desmond delves into the uneasy pact that exists between celebrity and the camera.

Annual Appeal

Listed by year

Honour board

Snap decisions

Magazine article by Robert Cook, 2018

NPPP judge Robert Cook provides irreverent insight into this year’s fare, and having to be a bit judgemental.

Sir Thomas Gore-Browne, 1864

J Walch & Sons

Portrait, tinted lithograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2018

Sydney Cove medallion, 1789 by Josiah Wedgwood

The medallion

Magazine article by Jenny Gall, 2017

In recent years I have become fascinated by the so-called Sydney Cove Medallion (1789), a work of art that bridges the 10,000-mile gap between the newly established penal settlement at Port Jackson and the beating heart of Enlightenment England.

Their brilliant careers

Jenny Gall delves into Starstruck to celebrate some of Australian cinema’s iconic women.

Poet of the Fleeting Moment

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2004

Mark Strizic's work crosses a broad spectrum of photographic fields including urban, industrial, commercial, and architectural photography.

Giving and getting

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2006

The exhibition Portraits for Posterity celebrates gifts to the Gallery, of purchases made with donated funds, and testifies to the generosity and community spirit of Australians.

William Shakespeare, c. 1600-1610 associated with John Taylor

Take thy face hence

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

Joanna Gilmour travels through time to explore the National Portrait Gallery London’s masterpieces in Shakespeare to Winehouse.

The inner voice

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2011

Dr Christopher Chapman, curator of Inner Worlds: Portraits & Psychology looks at Albert Tucker's Heidelberg military hospital portraits.

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

Kate Beynon’s transcultural life and art

The portraiture of Kristin Headlam

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

Confessional conversations

Magazine article by Fiona Gruber, 2015

Fiona Gruber investigates the work of Australian painter Kristin Headlam.

All in the Family

Magazine article by Barbara Blackman AO, 2003

In 2000, Barbara Blackman donated a portrait of her close friends - poet Judith Wright, her husband Jack McKinney and their daughter Meredith - painted by Charles Blackman.

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.

M H Wednesday 11.15am from the series Self-harm, 2004

Big it up

Magazine article by Magda Keaney, 2005

Former National Portrait Gallery Curator Magda Keaney was a member of the selection panel of the Schwepes Photographic Portrait Prize 2004 at the National Portrait Gallery London.

Women make history

Magazine article by Jennifer Higgie, 2022

Jennifer Higgie uncovers the intriguing stories behind portraits of women by women in the National Portrait Gallery’s collection.

Life class

Magazine article by Leonie Hellmers, 2004

Barbara Blackman reflects on her experiences as a life model.

In a good paddock

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2011

Celebrating a new painted portrait of Joseph Banks, Sarah Engledow spins a yarn of the naturalist, the first kangaroo in France and Don, a Spanish ram.

‘Untitled’ - Yellow Kangaroo Paw, 2008 by Christian Thompson

The 'I' in Indigenous art

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2013

Jane Raffan examines unique styles of Indigenous portraiture that challenge traditional Western concepts of the artform.

Portrait of Truganini, daughter of the Chief of Bruny Island, Van Diemens Land, c. 1835

Black and white history

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

English artist Benjamin Duterrau took up the cause of the Indigenous peoples of Tasmania with his detailed and sympathetic renderings.

Staying home

True south #2

Joanna Gilmour brings a mindful Douglas Mawson’s perspective to bear on the concept of isolation.

Exhibition opening speech

Magazine article by Angus Trumble, 2018

Leo Schofield introduces the exhibition, Masters of fare: chefs, winemakers, providores.

Study in scarlet

Angus Trumble reflects on the force of nature that was Helena Rubinstein.

Talking heads

Magazine article by Amanda Rowell, 2015

In their own words lead researcher Louise Maher on the novel project that lets the Gallery’s portraits speak for themselves.

Sophisticated and glamorous

Michael Riley’s early portraits by Amanda Rowell.

Beguiling impressions

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2012

Sarah Engledow is seduced by the portraits and the connections between the artists and their subjects in the exhibition Impressions: Painting light and life.

The transparent mask

Magazine article by Karen Vickery, 2015

Cate Blanchett and the art of acting in Rosetzky’s digital portrait.

Madame Sibly, Phrenologist and Mesmerist

Sibly irresistible

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2019

Alexandra Roginski reveals a forceful feminist figure in the colonial period’s slippery science, phrenology.

The story of us

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2022

Gallery directors Karen Quinlan and Tony Ellwood talk to Penelope Grist about the NPG and NGV collaborative exhibition, Who Are You: Australian Portraiture.

A non-material and non-physical portrait

Lecture, 21 May 2011

Magazine article by Lee Tulloch, 2011

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

Self Portrait, Stuart Campbell by Stuart Campbell

The essence of you

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

Eileen Dunne in The Hospital for Sick Children, 1940

The incomparable Beaton

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

To accompany the exhibition Cecil Beaton: Portraits, held at the NPG in 2005, this article is drawn from Hugo Vickers's authorised biography, Cecil Beaton (1985).

Pushpamala N

by Ajay Sinha

Artist essays

Pushpamala N. was born in 1956 in Bangalore. Her early training was in sculpture, but as her practice progressed she brought an early enthusiasm for narrative figuration into her photographic work.

People are people

Magazine article by Sandra Bruce, 2022

Sandra Bruce chats with seven-time NPPP finalist Chris Budgeon about photography, guitars and representing the human story.

Portraits and other stories

Magazine article by Christine Clark, 2006

As the National Portrait Gallery opens its exhibition of portrait and figurative work by veteran photographer Sam Haskins, the artist reflects on the highlights of his fifty-year career so far.

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.

Painting mates

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2011

Michael Desmond discusses Fred Williams' portraits of friends, artist Clifton Pugh, David Aspden and writer Stephen Murray-Smith, and the stylistic connections between his portraits and landscapes.

Trevor Jamieson, 2016 by Brett Canet-Gibson

The more things change...

NPPP 2017 exhibition essay

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

Lucy Culliton

Magazine article by Jane Kinsman, 2007

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.

Themes and variations (Annelies) A13, 1946

Listening to form

National Gallery of Australia curator Jane Kinsman discusses the portraiture of Henri Matisse.

NPPP 2016 exhibition essay

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2015

Penny Grist, National Photographic Portrait Prize judge and curator, introduces the 2016 Prize.

A.I.

Christopher Chapman ponders our digital identity and selfhood.

Meeting by Murder

Magazine article by Yvonne Audette AM, 2005

The story behind two colonial portraits; a lithograph of captain and convict John Knatchbull and newspaper illustration of Robert Lowe, Viscount Sherbrooke.

Poison pen

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2010

Michael Desmond examines the career of the eighteenth-century suspected poisoner and portrait artist Thomas Griffiths Wainewright.

Trumble's way

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

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?

The world of Thea Proctor

The world of Thea Proctor was the National Portrait Gallery's second exhibition to follow the life of a single person, following Rarely Everage: The lives of Barry Humphries.

Material culture

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2018

The Rajah Quilt’s narrative promptings are as intriguing as the textile is intricate.

Aretha Brown

In conversation

Magazine article by Rebecca Ray, 2023

Gumbaynggirr artist Aretha Brown talks street art, collaboration and ghost stories with First Nations Curator and Meriam woman, Rebecca Ray.

In profile

Julian Kingma

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2023

Penelope Grist explores the photographic instinct of four-time National Photographic Portrait Prize finalist Julian Kingma.

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.

Vanity fair

Magazine article by Ashleigh Wadman, 2012

Ashleigh Wadman rediscovers the Australian characters represented with a kindly touch by the British portrait artist Leslie Ward for the society magazine Vanity Fair.

General Birdwood, the Idol of Anzac, taking a dip in the sea after a hard days work 1915

In the thick of it

Projecting the splendour of the empire, and the resolve of its subjects, the bust of William Birdwood keeps a stiff upper lip in the National Portrait Gallery.

Alternative virtue

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2006

Joanna Gilmour presents John Kay’s portraits of a more infamous side of Edinburgh.

Aussies all

The exhibition Aussies all features the ecclectic portrait photography of Rennie Ellis which captures Australian life during the 70s and 80s.

Snap chat

Magazine article by Anne O'Hehir, 2019

2019 National Photographic Portrait Prize judge Anne O’Hehir looks beneath the surface of this year’s entries.

Queen Alexandra and Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia, Hvidore, circa 1908 by Mary Steen

The cost of living luxuriously

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2009

In 1904, the Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia purchased as a gift for her sister, Queen Alexandra, a fan composed of two-color gold, guilloché enamel, mother-of-pearl, blond tortoiseshell, gold sequins, silk, cabochon rubies, and rose diamonds from the House of Fabergé in Saint Petersburg.

Abstraction and figuration

James Angus discusses his major sculpture commission Geo Face Distributor with Christopher Chapman.

Movement is my radar

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2015

Michael Desmond charts the path of portraiture, arriving at Julian Opie’s digital realm.

Feminist Fan#1 (PUSSY: Casey at the Melbourne Pussy Riot Protest, 2012) 2015 by Kate Just

Heroine knits

Magazine article by Sophia Cai, 2017

‘Dear Kate Just – I’m your feminist fan’. Interview by Sophia Cai.

Tiny Trace of a Colonial Giant

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2004

At just 7.8 x 6.2 cm, the daguerreotype of Thomas Sutcliffe Mort and his wife Theresa is one of the smallest works in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery.

Sandor Ferenczis 50th birthday dinner, Budapest, 1923

Less than six degrees of separation

Magazine article by Dr Anne Sanders, 2011

Anne Sanders finds connections in Inner Worlds between Hungarian expatriates and the development of psychoanalysis in Australia.

The play’s the thing

Penelope Grist charts an immersive path through Stuart Spence’s photography.

Beyond the bow tie

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

Thrown together

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2013

Shipmates for years, James Cook and Joseph Banks each kept a journal but neither man shed light on their relationship.

The Cutmear sisters, Jane and Lucy, c. 1842

A man of superior attainments

Joanna Gilmour explores the life of a colonial portrait artist, writer and rogue Thomas Griffiths Wainewright.

Rock Island Bend. Franklin River, South West Tasmania, 1979 by Peter Dombrovskis

Written in Water

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2005

Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis, photographers and conservationists, shared a love of photography and exploring wilderness areas of Tasmania.

Painting writing

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2007

Dr Sarah Engledow explores the portraits of writers held in the National Portrait Gallery's collection.

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.

Doodles of the Diva

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Three tiny sketches of Dame Nellie Melba in the NPG collection were created by the artist who was to go on to paint the most imposing representation of the singer: Rupert Bunny.

Private virtues public lives

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

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.

Diamond Doll

Magazine article by Karen Vickery, 2016

Karen Vickery delights in a thespian thread of the Australian yarn.

Rethinking foundational histories

Magazine article by Kate Fullagar, 2019

A focus on Indigenous-European relationships underpins Facing New Worlds. By Kate Fullagar.

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

Mother’s muse

Magazine article by Inga Walton, 2020

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

Jim Cobb at Chroma factory Mt Kuring-gai, NSW, 2017 by Mark Mohell

The alchemist’s profile

Magazine article by John Zubrzycki, 2017

John Zubrzycki meets Australian paint pioneer Jim Cobb.

Reflections on portraiture

Magazine article by Andrew Sayers AM, 2004

An extract from the 2004 Nuala O'Flaaherty Memorial Lecture at the Queen Victoria Musuem and Art Gallery in Launceston in which Andrew Sayers reflects on the unique qualities of a portrait gallery.

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.

Off grid

Magazine article by Aimee Board, 2019

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

Some women you may not know

Alison Alder

‘Everybody’s lives are built by so many influences, and for me, it is writers, artists and activists who have influenced how I think about the world.’

The mind's eye

Magazine article by Dr Christopher Chapman, 2017

Christopher Chapman takes a trip through the doors of perception, arriving at the junction of surrealism and psychoanalysis.

Revd Dr Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch, c.1795 by Sir Henry Raeburn

Great Scots

Magazine article by Diana O'Neil, 2017

Diana O’Neil samples the tartan treats on offer in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

The importance of being bearded

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2012

Joanna Gilmour discovers that the beards of the ill-fated explorers Burke and Wills were as epic as their expedition to traverse Australia from south to north.

Graeme Drendel

I like talking about Drendel’s pictures as if they expressed dreams of my own.

Some prime ministers

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

The silent partner

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

Cover, first minute book of the Tasmanian Society of Natural History

Embrace your inner nerd

The southern winter has arrived. For people in the northern hemisphere (the majority of humanity) the idea of snow and ice, freezing mist and fog in June, potentially continuing through to August and beyond, encapsulates the topsy-turvidom of our southern continent.

Robyn Sweaney

Magazine article by Sandra Bruce, 2021

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.

Splendid, many-splendoured

Sandra Bruce gazes on love and the portrait through Australian Love Stories’ multi-faceted prism.

The art of Inner Worlds

Lecture, 7 May 2011

Magazine article by Penelope Grist and Rebecca Ray, 2022

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

See through me

Penelope Grist and Rebecca Ray talk to the artists in Portrait23: Identity about transcending modes of portraiture.

Less than six degrees of separation

Lecture, 28 May 2011

Magazine article by Keith Christiansen, 2012

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

Emblems of beauty

Keith Christiansen introduces the exhibition The Renaissance Portrait from Donatello to Bellini on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Hard truths

Magazine article by Jennifer Higgie, 2022

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

Home and away

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Sir William Dobell painted the portraits of Sir Charles Lloyd Jones and Sir Hudson Fysh, who did much to promote the image of Australia in this country and abroad.

You beauty

Joanna Gilmour explores the fact and fictions surrounding the legendary life of Irish-born dancer Lola Montez.

Getting a head

Magazine article by Alexandra Roginski, 2015

Alexandra Roginski gets a feel for phrenology’s fundamentals.

What price self?

Magazine article by Jane Raffan, 2013

Jane Raffan investigates auction sales of self portraits nationally and internationally.

Starry knight

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2016

Aircraft designer, pilot and entrepreneur, Sir Lawrence Wackett rejoins friends and colleagues on the walls of the National Portrait Gallery.

Waterfall in Australia, c. 1830 by Augustus Earle

Augustus serendipitous

The London-born son of an American painter, Augustus Earle ended up in Australia by accident in January 1825.

Nicholas Harding: 28 Portraits

Exhibition essay

Sarah Engledow looks at three decades of Nicholas Harding's portraiture.

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.

History

About us

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

Portrait of Thea Proctor, 1905 by George Lambert

The real Thea

Long after the portraitist became indifferent to her, and died, a beguiling portrait hung over its subject.

Inner Worlds and psychoanalysis

Lecture, 4 June 2011

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

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.

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.

Untitled #21/09 (after Ricci, 1700; featuring Matthew Mitcham)

Getting bare

Magazine article by Penelope Grist, 2015

How seven portraits within Bare reveal in a public portrait parts of the body and elements of life usually located in the private sphere.

Mary (or Diana) Croker, mat woman, Colchester, 1823 by John Dempsey

Unknown drawer

Magazine article by Dr David Hansen, 2017

Dempsey’s People curator David Hansen chronicles a research tale replete with serendipity, adventure and Tasmanian tigers.

Generous Janice

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2013

Dr Sarah Engledow puts four gifts to the National Portrait Gallery’s Collection in context.

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.

Secure the shadow ere the substance fade

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2017

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

Through thick and thin

Sarah Engledow likes the manifold mediums of Nicholas Harding’s portraiture.

Portrait Donors

Listed by year

Honour board

You are who?

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2022

Joanna Gilmour reflects on merging collections and challenging traditional assumptions around portraiture in WHO ARE YOU.

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

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.

Anangu landscape learning

NPPP 2014 exhibition essay

Angus' initial perception of Uluru shifts, as he comes to see it as central to the entire order of Anangu life.

The Art Lovers - Megan, 2013 by Gary Grealy

Everybody, look serious

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

Faces of war

Lecture, 14 May 2011

Lesley Harding, Curator, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne explores Albert Tucker’s experience of World War II, his interests in the intersection between psychology and creativity, and their influence on his portrait making.

Christmas Island