Skip to main content

What's on

Prizes

Watch

The Gallery

Governance & Board

Circle of Friends

Learn

Access

Search the website

close close

What's on The Portraits The Gallery Learn Watch More O

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

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are warned that this website contains images of deceased persons.

Search / john smith

General information

Reputedly Elizabeth Macarthur, 1785-1790 Unknown

The most material advantages

A one-in-a-thousand woman

Elizabeth

The National Portrait Prizes

29 January 2020

Archived media releases 2020

The National Portrait Gallery today announced finalists for the inaugural Darling Portrait Prize, a national new $75,000 prize for Australian portrait painting, and released selected images from the final prize pool for the popular National Photography Portrait Prize.

Study of Louis Nowra

Study of Louis Nowra, 2018

by Imants Tillers

General content

Commissioned with funds provided by Tim Bednall, Jillian Broadbent AO, John Kaldor AO and Naomi Milgrom AO 2018

Sammy Dodd

2022 Annual Appeal

In 2022 the Annual Appeal was focussed on Mayatjara by Robert Fielding, a series of 24 photographs of Elders of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara community.

Arthur Streeton, Nora Streeton (nee Clench) and Pat, the dog

The Streetons’ rich serenade

If music be the food of love

Walking in Tall Grass, Marion 2, 2011 by Jan Nelson

Jan Nelson

More about In the flesh artists

Jan Nelson was born in Melbourne. She graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1983 and has been exhibited her work in both solo and group exhibitions throughout Australia since that time including at the MCA, Sydney, National Gallery of Victoria, Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane and the Experimental Art Foundation, Adelaide.

Angus Trumble and David Hansen

National Portrait Gallery Director's tenure ends in triumph

30 November 2018

Archived media releases 2018

National Portrait Gallery Director Angus Trumble is ending his five-year tenure with a flourish, after announcing that Gallery publication Dempsey’s People: A Folio of British Street Portraits 1824-1844 has been awarded the 2018 William MB Berger Prize for British Art History.

Arcadia (Wayne Lynch and Bob McTavish)

The soul surfer’s manifesto

Barrels, bliss and brotherhood

Announcing.... In their own words

24 November 2020

Archived media releases 2020

Inspiring Australians tell their own stories in a unique new gallery audio tour, developed in collaboration with the National Library of Australia.

Rachel Ward and Bryan Brown

Australian Love Stories

Archived media releases 2021

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

Gordon and Marilyn Darling

Honour board

Support your Portrait Gallery

The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges and thanks all its supporters.

June Dally-Watkins

2023 Annual Appeal

In 2023 the Annual Appeal was focussed on a work by one of Australia's best loved and most successful portrait painters, Judy Cassab AO CBE, depicting model, entrepreneur and deportment icon, June Dally-Watkins OAM.

Canberra Marathon 2025 road closures

Temporary road closures

Sunday 13 April 2025

Road closures for the Canberra Marathon will block vehicle access to our building and carpark on Sunday 13 April until 3:00pm.

Richard Morecroft & Alison Mackay, 2016 by Gary Grealy

Gary Grealy wins National Photographic Portrait Prize 2017

Archived media releases 2017

After months of anticipation, the winner for the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2017 has been announced with renowned Sydney portrait photographer Gary Grealy taking out the award. George Fetting, guest judge for the 2017 Prize, was entranced with the evocative nature of the winning portrait Richard Morecroft and Alison Mackay.

Portrait of TERROIR, 2009 by Brett Boardman

TERROIR

General content

TERROIR directors Gerard Reinmuth, Scott Balmforth and Richard Blythe believe that the practice of architecture is the production of knowledge.

Finalists announced for National Photographic Portrait Prize

14 November 2018

Archived media releases 2018

The National Portrait Gallery would like to congratulate the forty finalists for the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2019.

© National Portrait Gallery 2025
King Edward Terrace, Parkes
Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia
Phone +61 2 6102 7000
ABN: 54 74 277 1196

The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders past and present. We respectfully advise that this site includes works by, images of, names of, voices of and references to deceased people.

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

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

The National Portrait Gallery is an Australian Government Agency