Archibald Prize is an Australian art prize awarded each year for portrait painting. Jules François (J. F.) Archibald, an Australian newspaper editor who died in 1919, provided the money for the award in his will. The first prize was awarded in 1921. Under the terms of the will, the prize goes to the best portrait, “preferentially of some man or woman distinguished in art, letters, science, or politics.” The portrait must be painted by an Australian artist, or an artist who has lived in the country for at least 12 months before the entry date of the competition. Artists throughout Australia compete for the award. The trustees of the National Art Gallery in Sydney administer and judge the competition. The portraits can be painted in any medium and can be of any size. The Art Gallery of New South Wales displays the winning entry and those considered by the trustees to be worth exhibiting. The trustees reserve the right to withhold the award if they think that the standard of entries is not high enough. In 1964, they withheld the award for the first time. See also Dargie, Sir William ; Dobell, Sir William .
