A beginners’ guide to the Archibald Prize (and the Wynne and Sulman Prizes)

The Archibald has been plagued by a few controversies and several court cases in its time. Famously, in 1997, a painting by Evert Ploeg of beloved childrens’ television characters the Bananas in Pyjamas was deemed ineligible because it was not a painting of a person.

But perhaps the most famous controversy in Archie history surrounds the 1943 winner. William Dobell's portrait of fellow artist Joshua Smith, titled 'Mr Joshua Smith', was challenged by claims that it was a caricature rather than a traditional portrait, its expressive style being a break from the realism the prize had favoured to that date. The unusual style drew record crowds to the Gallery, and two entrants took (ultimately, unsuccessful) legal action against Dobell and the trustees. 

In 1938, Nora Heysen became the first woman to win the Archibald with a portrait of Madame Elink Schuurman, the French wife of the Consul General for the Netherlands. Artist Max Meldrum publicly criticised the decision, saying that women could not be expected to paint as well as men. Meldrum is said to have declared, “If I were a woman, I would certainly prefer raising a healthy family to a career in art”. Sounds like a really pleasant guy.

1972's winner made a splash first at the Archies, and next at Parliament. After winning the Archibald in 1971, well-known artist Clifton Pugh announced he would be painting “the next prime minister”, Gough Whitlam. He announced this in February, and Whitlam was sworn in that December, by which time the portrait was finished. The expressive piece would become Pugh’s third Archibald-winning work. When Whitlam was controversially dismissed from office in 1975, instead of sitting for an official portrait to hang in Parliament House in Canberra, he requested that Pugh's portrait be hung instead – and the portrait remains part of the Parliament House collection to this day.

Feeling smug about your mug? Famous Sydney artist Brett Whiteley must have been when he chose to enter a self-portrait into the 1976 Archibald Prize. His painting 'Self-portrait in the studio' was a turning point for the Archies, as it challenged traditional tenets of likeness and realism and stretched the definition of portraiture, with his face only making a small appearance in the bottom corner. The painting is now in the collection of the Art Gallery of NSW. Whiteley went on to win the Archibald again in 1978 with 'Art, life and the other thing' – and that same year, he also won the Wynne and Sulman Prizes, becoming the first and only artist to win all three awards in one year. Speaking of selfies, fellow Sydney artist Del Kathryn Barton also won with a self-portrait in 2008. 

The Packing Room Prize is considered just as important (if not more important) than the official Archie winner. The $3000 prize is always announced a week before the exhibition opens to the public, and is judged by the art gallery staff who unpack and hang the portraits.

Wynne, what? Somehow, it’s easy to miss the other two names always written next to the Archibald. But we should pay our respects where they are due to the $50,000 Wynne Prize, the true forebearer of Australian art prizes. The official opening of the Art Gallery in 1897 was accompanied by the first Wynne Prize, and it awards the best landscape painting of Australian scenery or figurative sculpture.

If the three prizes were siblings, the $40,000 Sulman Prize would be the unruly and unpredictable youngest. The Sulman has been awarded since 1936 for the best genre painting, subject painting or mural project. It’s the only prize of the three that is not judged by the trustees of the Art Gallery, but an invited artist.

Vote for your favourite painting

Don’t forget to leave a vote for the ANZ People’s Choice Award before you leave the gallery. The people's pick of favourite portrait was first awarded in 1988, and you’ll often find that its winner is different to the other two portrait awards. Voting for 2025 closes on July 27.

Figure out how you’re getting there

This one’s a no-brainer, but, a bit of planning helps for getting anywhere in Sydney’s clogged up CBD. If you’re taking a train, you can walk from Museum Station. Otherwise just be ready to pay for parking, at quiet times there’s usually some street parking outside the Art Gallery and there’s the pretty affordable Domain Car Park ($10 all day on the weekends!). Weekends and holiday periods are usually the most popular times for people to visit the Art Gallery; late afternoon and midweek sessions generally have a little less demand.

Check out the marvellous rejects 

For all of the finalists artworks on show at the Art Gallery of NSW, there are hundreds more hopefuls that didn't make the cut – and that isn't necessarily a reflection of the quality of the work. There are a couple of galleries that give the artists who aren't exhibited in the Archibald Prize, Wynne and Sulman prizes a chance to shine. SH Ervin Gallery in the Rocks has been hosting Salon des Refusés (May 10 - July 27) since 1992; and Tap Gallery in Surry Hills has been hosting the Real Refuse* (May 30–31) for three decades now.