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

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Rupert Bunny

Biography

Rupert Charles Wulsten Bunny (1864–1947) was one of the most celebrated Australian expatriate artists of his generation, achieving a degree of success in Paris in the 1890s and early 1900s that was unmatched by his peers.

3 portraits in the collection

Self portrait with scarf, c. 1930s

Rupert Bunny

Portrait, oil on canvas

Gift of Philip Bacon AM 2012. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rupert Murdoch AC KCSG

Biography

Rupert Murdoch AC (b. 1931) is widely regarded as the world's most influential media mogul.

2 portraits in the collection

Sir Rupert Hamer AC KCMG ED

Biography

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

1 portrait in the collection

Rupert C.W. Bunny, 1928

Arthur T. Woodward

Portrait, watercolour and gouache on strawboard

Gift of Ben Travers 2021. Donated through Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.

Rupert Murdoch, 2005

Ben Baker

Portrait, type C photograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2005

Rupert Murdoch, c. 1986

Joe Greenberg

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

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of the artist 2001

Study for portrait of Sir Rupert 'Dick" Hamer', 2009

Lewis Miller

Portrait, oil on linen

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Sir Andrew Grimwade CBE 2018
Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program

Dame Nellie Melba, c. 1901

Rupert Bunny

Portrait, pencil on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2009

Doodles of the Diva

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 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.

Shadows cast on fairy tale scene

Lust

Bunny’s side-honey

The Cosmopolitans

In Gallery Two

Previous exhibition, 2023

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

Tea time, c.1898–1902 by Rupert Bunny (1864–1947)

Impressions

Painting light and life

Previous exhibition, 2011

Impressions: Painting light and life presents portraits by, and of, artists at the heart of Australian impressionism including Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton and Frederick McCubbin.

John and Lottie’s wedding, early 1970s Unknown artist

Shifting the definition

Nearest & Dearest

Defiant commitment

Paul Newton

Biography

Paul Newton (b. 1961), is a Sydney-based portrait painter noted for his ability to capture likeness and sensibility.

6 portraits in the collection

Sir Keith Murdoch

Biography

Sir Keith Murdoch (1886–1952), journalist and media proprietor, was dux of his Melbourne school before becoming a cadet journalist for the Age in 1904.

1 portrait in the collection

Adam Knott

Biography

Adam Knott (b. 1966) began taking photographs for local newspapers as a schoolboy in St George, South Sydney.

7 portraits in the collection

The Cosmopolitans

Now on display in Gallery Two

General content

Sir Keith Murdoch, 1944

Danila Vassilieff

Portrait, oil on canvas

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Gift of Serafin Martinez and Thai Loi 2013

Lewis Miller

Biography

Lewis Miller (b. 1959), artist, won the Archibald Prize in 1998 with one of his many portraits of fellow artist Allan Mitelman, and has been a finalist seventeen times.

4 portraits in the collection

Dame Elisabeth Murdoch AC DBE

Biography

Dame Elisabeth Murdoch AC DBE (1909–2012), philanthropist, was the widow of Sir Keith Murdoch and mother of the publisher, Rupert Murdoch.

1 portrait in the collection

Dame Elisabeth Murdoch

Magazine article by Simon Elliott, 2002

The story behind the commissioning of the tapesty portrait of Dame Elisabeth Murdoch.

Janet Holmes a Court AC

Biography

Janet Holmes à Court AC (b. 1943), businesswoman and philanthropist, graduated in science and worked as a teacher before marrying young Perth lawyer Robert Holmes à Court in 1966.

1 portrait in the collection

Janet Holmes á Court, 2001 (printed 2011)

Lorrie Graham

Portrait, gelatin silver photograph on paper

Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2011

Sarah Engledow and Acorn, 2016 by Mark Mohell

Explore The Popular Pet Show

The artists and their furry friends

General content

Curator, Sarah Engledow, introduces the artists and the animals in The Popular Pet Show.

Sir Frank Packer

Biography

Sir Douglas Frank Hewson Packer KBE (1906-1974), media proprietor, grew up in Sydney and became a cadet journalist on the Daily Guardian, owned by his father RC Packer, in 1923.

2 portraits in the collection

Supporters

$5,000 - $9,999

Honour board

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

Richard Divall AO OBE

Biography

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

Jeffrey Smart AO

Biography

Jeffrey Smart (1921–2013) was an iconic realist painter, acclaimed for his urban and industrial landscapes which form one of the most original and recognisable bodies of work in the canon of Australian art.

6 portraits in the collection

Australian Love Stories

4 January 2021

Archived media releases 2021

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

Darren McDonald

Explore The Popular Pet Show

The wild balancing act of McDonald’s home décor (is that there as a joke? where do I actually sit down? is this ironic or what? what a lovely photo of Darren and Robin in Europe!) is reflected in his own personality.

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis

Portrait of Professors Margaret Gardner and Glyn Davis, 2017

Jacqueline Mitelman

Portrait, type C photograph on paper

Commissioned with funds provided by Jim and Barbara Higgins, Sir Roderick Carnegie AC, Rupert Myer AO and Annabel Myer, Louise and Martyn Myer Foundation, Peter and Ruth McMullin, Diana Carlton, Professor Derek Denton AC, Harold Mitchell AC, Peter Jopling AM KC, Andrew and Liz Mackenzie, Patricia Patten, Tamie Fraser AO, Bruce Parncutt and Robin Campbell, Lauraine Diggins, Steven Skala AO and Lousje Skala 2017

School portraits

About Face article

Inga Walton sheds light on a portraiture collection usually only seen by students and teachers at Melbourne University.

Prince William of Wales, by Mario Testino, 2003 publ. September 2003.
Credit: Mario Testino

Vanity Fair Portraits

Photographs 1913-2008

Previous exhibition, 2009

Vanity Fair Portraits traces the birth and evolution of photographic portraiture through the archives of Vanity Fair magazine.

Gail Kelly, 2018

by Paul Newton

General content

Commissioned with funds provided by Westpac Group and Optus 2018

Harriet Schwarzrock: spaces between movement and stillness

10 February 2021

Archived media releases 2021

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

Glossy 2

Faces, Magazines, Now

Previous exhibition, 2005

Following the success of Glossy: Faces, Magazines, Now in 1999 the National Portrait Gallery again highlights the huge array of contemporary portraiture in the pages of magazines.

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?

Clifton Pugh

Australians

Previous exhibition, 2005

This exhibition offers a comprehensive display of Clifton Pugh's portraits revealing his development and growth from tonal paintings to a unique style that was in demand from politicians, artists, academics and Australian personalities.

Vintage Cassab

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2006

The oil portrait of Sir Frank Packer KBE by Judy Cassab was gifted to the National Portrait Gallery in 2006.

Making Portraits

Five Years of National Portrait Gallery Commissions

Previous exhibition, 2004

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

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.

Blue Mountain, Owner, Trainer, Jockey, James Scobie

Sure thing

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

Blue Mountain, Owner, Trainer, Jockey, James Scobie 1887 by Frederick Woodhouse Snr. is a portrait of James Scobie, well known jockey and eminent horse trainer.

The silent partner

Magazine article by Dr Sarah Engledow, 2015

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

International issue

Magazine article by Michael Desmond, 2009

Michael Desmond looks at the history of the Vanity Fair magazine in conjunction with the exhibition Vanity Fair Portraits: Photographs 1913-2008

Small worlds

Magazine article by Joanna Gilmour, 2010

Bess Norriss Tait created miniature watercolour portraits full of character and life.

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.

Splendid, many-splendoured

Magazine article by Sandra Bruce, 2021

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

Mick Jagger, Madonna and Tony Curtis, 1997

The Vanity model

Magazine article by David Friend, 2009

Vanity Fair Editor David Friend describes how the rebirth of the magazine sated our desire for access into the lives of celebrities and set the standard for the new era of portrait photography.

A sketch for some portraits

Magazine article by Judith Pugh, 2005

Judith Pugh reflects on Clifton Pugh's approach to portrait making.

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.

Less than six degrees of separation

Lecture, 28 May 2011

General content

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

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