Any Australian resident/s over the age of 18. Employees of The Lester and the Partners, and employees or immediate families of The Lester Judges or the Minderoo Judges and each of their respective agents, cannot enter the Prize.

Yes, if you are an Australian resident who is either an Australian Citizen or hold a Permanent Visa.

Yes.

Emerging Artist means an Artist who: (a) has, within the last five years, either: (i) committed to practice as a visual artist and commenced working seriously to develop and promote a career as a professional artist, or (ii) graduated with an art degree or similar formal qualification; (b) may have exhibited commercially in a group show or a solo show but has not had more than two solo shows at commercial or institutional galleries (excluding Artist run initiatives); is not yet held in the collection of any national or state public collecting institution; and (d) has not previously won a national art prize, unless the prize is specifically aimed at emerging artists.

Entries are to be completed and submitted via an online application form (link below). Please read the Terms and Conditions to ensure your eligibility and then proceed to the form.

While the human form must be the focus of the Portrait, artists are invited to interpret the concept of Portraiture broadly.

Yes, $45.00 including GST.

The Portrait may be executed in (but is not restricted to) oil, acrylic, watercolour, pastels, textiles, pencils, charcoal, ink and mixed media. The Portrait cannot be a sculpture, photograph or digital media.

The maximum size is 200cm x 200cm (including frame, if framed) and must be 30kg or less. The Portrait should be capable of vertical display by hanging on a wall.

Yes, however the work must adhere to the maximum artwork size and weight stipulated above.

Yes, you may enter an unlimited number of Portraits into the Prize. A separate Entry Form and Entry Fee must be completed for each Portrait.

Yes.

The Portrait must have been completed in the 18 months immediately preceding the Closing Date of the Call for Entries.

Yes, so long as you have obtained consent from each of the subjects as per the Subject’s Consent section of the Entry Form.

For reasons including shatter resistance and weight requirements, we do not accept works framed with glass. Works must be framed using Perspex or acrylic (Plexiglass) only.

Yes, however the photographer must consent to their photograph being used by the Artist to create the Portrait.

The ‘author’ of an image is the person who has created it. For example, if you submit a photo of your artwork that was taken by somebody else, that person is the author of the photo you have submitted.

Your sitter must be an Australian Resident.

Yes, provided you have permission from the legal personal representative of the Artist’s estate.

The Pre-Selection Panel members and Judges for both the Adult Awards and Youth Awards change every year. They are a group of independent experts in their respective fields with no commercial association with The Lester Prize. The panel is never provided with the name or location of the artist, just the digital image of the artwork, title, dimensions and medium.

No, only one Portrait may be selected as a Finalist.

Approximately 40 – 45 Finalists.

The Main Exhibition is held at The Art Gallery of Western Australia.

Yes, by electing to do so in the Entry Form. If sold during the Exhibition Period, a 30% commission (plus GST) is payable by the Finalist to The Lester. If requested, The Lester will assist in arranging transport of a Sale Portrait to a buyer following the Exhibition Period; however, the Finalist agrees that The Lester is not responsible for paying any of the costs to transport a Sale Portrait to a buyer.

Finalists will be announced to the media and published on the website by no later than 5pm (AWST) on Friday 6 August 2021. Following this, all Entrants will be notified via email.

• The Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture: $50,000 awarded to a Finalist by The Lester Judges
• Tony Fini Foundation Artist Prize: $15,000 awarded to a Finalist by popular vote of the other Finalists
• People’s Choice Prize sponsored by the Baldock Family: $10,000 awarded to the Finalist with the most votes from the public
• Minderoo Foundation Spirit Prize: $10,000 awarded to a Finalist by the Minderoo Judges
• Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize: A$5,000 awarded to a Finalist who is an Emerging Artist by The Lester Judges
• Barton Family Foundation Installers’ Prize: $5,000 cash awarded based on selection by the Art Gallery of Western Australia installation team
• Highly Commended, awarded by The Lester Judges to up to two Finalists

By entering you allow permission to display or exhibit their Portrait, or a print or digital reproduction of their Portrait at any time during the Exhibition Period.

Due to the large volume of submissions, we are unable to provide individual feedback to entrants.