Archibald Prize facts and figures
John Olsen at the Archibald Prize 2005 winner announcement
As the Archibald Prize has been regularly likened to the Melbourne Cup (the face, rather than the race, that stops a nation), it’s not surprising that people are interested in percentages, firsts and favourites.
Here are the most requested facts and figures, answers to frequently asked questions, and corrections to some common misconceptions.
Misconceptions
Misconception #1
The artist has to be Australian to be in the Archibald.
According to the bequest of JF Archibald that established the prize, the competition is open to artists ‘resident in Australasia’ during the 12 months before entries close. So artists living in Australia AND New Zealand can enter, regardless of their citizenship status.
Misconception #2
The portrait subject has to be a famous Australian.
There are no rules around the sitter, including what they do or how well known they are. Archibald’s bequest just says ‘preferentially of some man or woman distinguished in art, letters, science or politics’. The key word is ‘preferentially’. There is no mention at all of nationality or residency, but the work is meant to be ‘painted from life’ so it’s much easier to organise a portrait sitting with someone close to home.
Misconception #3
The winning portraits are in the Art Gallery of NSW collection.
The prize is non-acquisitive, which means that artworks don’t automatically enter the Gallery’s collection. They may remain with the artist or be sold or gifted by them. Some have been specifically commissioned by a person or an institution. However, over 100 works from the Archibald are now in our collection, having been bought by the Gallery or donated to us. A few early Archibald works were actually Gallery commissions.
Actual wording of the entry conditions
The prize will be awarded, in the terms of the will of the late JF Archibald dated 15 March 1916, to the best portrait “preferentially of some man or woman distinguished in art, letters, science or politics, painted by any artist resident in Australasia during the 12 months preceding the date fixed by the Trustees for sending in the pictures”.
Facts, figures and FAQs
How many works have been in the Archibald?
6000-plus, from more than 34,000 entries (as of 2023).
How many artists have been in the Archibald?
More than 1500, around one-third women, although for about 5% of artists in our historic records their gender is unknown.
We’re counting collaborations as ‘one artist’ for those figures. The collaborative work with the most number of people participating was a 2017 portrait by 301 boys, aged five to 12, from Sydney Grammar Edgecliff Preparatory School – making them also the youngest artists to exhibit.
How many New Zealand-based artists?
Just nine that we know of. The most recent was in 2020 (John Ward Knox). Only one has ever won an associated prize: Auckland-based Martin Ball took out the Packing Room Prize in 2008.
How many Indigenous Australian artists?
As of 2023, we know of 27 Aboriginal artists and no Torres Strait Islander ones who’ve exhibited in the prize.
Who was the first Indigenous artist to exhibit?
Robert Campbell Jnr, in 1989, with a portrait of musician Mac Silva.
Who’s exhibited the most works?
Joseph Wolinski, 107 works between 1921 and 1951
Reginald Jerrold-Nathan, 76 works between 1926 and 1972
Ernest Buckmaster, 72 works between 1924 and 1966.
The most-exhibited woman artist: Aileen Dent, with 63 works between 1921 and 1962.
The reason those figures are so high is that, up to and including 1945, every entry was hung and there was no limit to the number of works an artist could submit. From 1946 to 2002, every artist could submit up to two works, and both might be selected; since 2003, the limit is one work per artist.
The artist who submitted the most works in any one year: Vincent Sacco, with nine works in 1945.
How many portraits are of Indigenous people and who was the first?
As of 2023, we have identified 126 portraits of Indigenous people.
The first identified portrait is of preacher, author and inventor David Unaipon by BE Minns in 1924. The first identified portrait of an Indigenous woman is of blues singer Georgia Lee by Paul Haefliger in 1949. And the first winning portrait of an Indigenous Australian was William Dargie’s painting of artist Albert Namatjira in 1956.
How many portraits are of women?
Like the artists, around one-third.
Who’s been in the most portraits?
If you count self-portraits, then the top three are:
Charles Bush, 18 times (including 17 self-portraits)
Lloyd Rees, 16 times (including 3 self-portraits)
Joseph Wolinski, 15 times (all self-portraits).
If you exclude self-portraits, then:
gallerist Ray Hughes, 14 times
writer Mary Gilmore, 11 times
sculptor Lyndon Dadswell, 10 times.
How many times has the Archibald Prize been awarded?
The first award was in 1921. On two occasions – in 1964 and 1980 – the judges decided that no entry was worthy of the award. There was also a skipped or combined year – 1991/92 – due to an adjustment in the exhibition schedule. So the 2023 Archibald Prize was actually the 100th award.
How many artists have won?
As of 2023, 63 artists have won.
How many women have won?
As of 2023, 11 women have won, a total of 13 times:
Nora Heysen 1938
Judy Cassab 1960 and 1967
Janet Dawson 1973
Davida Allen 1986
Wendy Sharpe 1996
Cherry Hood 2002
Del Kathryn Barton 2008 and 2013
Fiona Lowry 2014
Louise Hearman 2016
Yvette Coppersmith 2018
Julia Gutman 2023
How many Indigenous artists have won?
As of 2023, two Aboriginal artists have won:
Vincent Namatjira 2020
Blak Douglas 2022
In 2020, the Packing Room Prize was awarded to Meyne Wyatt which made him the first Indigenous artist to win any of the awards related to the Archibald.
Who’s won the most times?
William Dargie, 8 times between 1941 and 1956
WB McInnes, 7 times between 1921 and 1936
John Longstaff and Ivor Hele, both 5 times, between 1925 and 1935 and between 1951 and 1957 respectively.
Two women have won more than once: Judy Cassab in 1960 and 1967 and Del Kathryn Barton in 2008 and 2013.
In total, 16 artists have won twice or more.
Who’s the youngest winner?
Nora Heysen in 1938. She was just 28 at the time.
Who’s the oldest winner?
John Olsen, at age 77, in 2005.
Who’s won the most People’s Choice awards?
Vincent Fantauzzo has won four times (2008, 2009, 2013, 2014) since the award, voted by exhibition visitors, began in 1988.
Who’s won the most Packing Room Prize awards?
Three artists have won twice since the award began in 1991: Bill Leak (1997, 2000), Paul Newton (1996, 2001) and Jan Williamson (2002, 2003).
Has anyone ever won the Archibald Prize, Packing Room Prize and People’s Choice in the same year?
No. Twice, the Archibald Prize and the People’s Choice has gone to the same artist: Fred Cress (1988) and Craig Ruddy (2004). And the Packing Room Prize and People’s Choice combination has been won by Bruno Jean Grasswill (2015), Jan Williamson (2002) and Paul Newton (2001).
Has anyone ever won the Archibald Prize, Wynne Prize and Sulman Prize in the same year?
Once. Brett Whiteley in 1978. He had previously won the Archibald and the Sulman in 1976.
The Archibald and Wynne has been won in the same year by William Dobell, in 1948, and Sam Leach, in 2010.
The Archibald and Sulman was won in 1983 by Nigel Thomson.
How many portraits of women have won?
As of 2023, 18 portraits of women have won and one portrait of a non-binary person, compared with 81 portraits of men.
How many portraits of Indigenous people have won?
As of 2023, five portraits of Aboriginal people have won:
Albert Namatjira, by William Dargie, 1956
David Gulpilil, by Craig Ruddy, 2004
Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, by Guido (Guy) Maestri, 2009
Adam Goodes, by Vincent Namatjira, 2020
Karla Dickens, by Blak Douglas, 2022
How many self-portraits have won?
As of 2023, 13 self-portraits, by 11 artists, have won:
Henry Hanke 1934
Normand Baker 1937
Ivor Hele 1957
Brett Whiteley 1976
Brett Whiteley 1978
William Robinson 1987
William Robinson 1995
Wendy Sharpe 1996
Euan Macleod 1999
John Olsen 2005
Del Kathryn Barton 2008
Tim Storrier 2012
Yvette Coppersmith 2018
How many portraits of artists have won?
As of 2023, 37 portraits of artists have won, including self-portraits.
Things to note
Our figures for artists and works have to encompass some anomalies. For 1921 there is no catalogue or list of works so artists and works are based on research from media reports and other sources. In 1968, only the winner was hung due to building works in the Gallery, although all entries from which the trustees made their choice are listed in the prizes archive and counted in total tallies. In 2000, there was a one-off Sporting Portrait Prize that was exhibited with the Archibald; these works are counted in tallies as ‘Archibald works’ although the entries were separate. In some years the Packing Room Prize winner was not selected by the trustees as a finalist.
Artist entrants have only been given the option to self-identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander relatively recently. Indigenous artists and sitters have been identified through research and there may be errors and omissions.