The Playmaker
Let's play
PLAYMAKER
  • It's Sunday
    What day is it?
  • Now
    What time is it?
  • Anywhere in Canberra
    Where are you?
  • What do you feel like?
    What do you feel like?
  • And what else?
    And what else?
  • LET'S PLAY

National Portrait Gallery

An extensive collection of portraits of Australia's most prominent figures.
By Melanie Colwell
June 23, 2021
  shares
By Melanie Colwell
June 23, 2021
  shares

Whether you like to track down nature, food, wine or culture on your getaways, you're sure to find it in the Canberra region. For the art lovers among us, that means hitting up exhibitions at the national galleries. And one that needs to be on your hit list is the National Portrait Gallery.

It took a long time and lots of lobbying from the arts community for Australia's own national portrait gallery to be established. Finally, in 1999, the first exhibition was unveiled, featuring Barry Humphries (1958) by Clifton Pugh and The movie star (1985), a photograph of Indigenous actor and dancer David Gulpilil, by Tracey Muffat.

In 2008, the gallery moved into its current home on King Edward Terrace and its collection has blown out to over 2300 individual works spanning four centuries and many subjects. You'll be able to see Archibald Prize winner Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (2009) by Guy Maestri, a watercolour of Midnight Oil by eX de Medici's and Victorian Tapestry Workshop's woven portrait Elisabeth Murdoch (2000) — among many, many others.

  •   shares
      shares
  • VIEW COMMENTS
Tap and select Add to Home Screen to access Concrete Playground easily next time. x
Counter Pixel