Fiona O'Byrne won the $50,000 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture after judges chose her painting from more than 1,100 submissions, the largest number in the prize's history. The award puts a substantial sum and public recognition behind one artist's work. The judges decide which portraits receive that attention.
Who Gets the Prize
O'Byrne's winning work, Luci, now, is an oil-on-linen portrait of her 20-year-old daughter sitting on a stool with a neutral expression. O'Byrne has painted her children for the past 10 years, while splitting her time between painting and landscape architecture.
"Sitting together, you really see time move, and you see how the relationship changes," O'Byrne wrote about the work. "It's an opportunity for me to stop and spend time observing her in this moment of her life. Painting her was just a way of holding onto that fierce, generous heart."
Judges Alan Dodge, John McDonald and Bryony Nainby said the portrait's softness and tenderness captivated them. They praised its "unlaboured handling of paint," the intimacy between sitter and artist, the apparent ease in the subject's expression, its treatment of light, and details of the jacket and nail varnish. Those qualities earned the work the top award and its $50,000 purse.
O'Byrne told the ABC she first picked up a paintbrush at 36, after deciding she needed a creative activity outside her day job. "When my youngest was one I felt like I really needed to do something outside my day job, something creative, and I took myself off to an art class and never looked back," she said. "I found my tribe, I found my happy place - it was life changing for me."
A Prize With a Price Tag
O'Byrne said the money would let her explore new ideas without the pressure to sell the pieces. "For me it's a huge amount of freedom it gives me as an artist." In her account, the prize changes the conditions under which she can make work: the winner gets room to experiment without relying on sales.
The Lester Prize has a total prize pool of $140,000. Russell Lester, founding partner of The Lester Prize, said the submission count reflected the prize's impact on the arts community. "Our ongoing stewardship of Australian talent and creativity is of utmost importance," Mr Lester said. More than 60 per cent of entries came from outside Western Australia, he said, and he welcomed the chance to bring the community together to celebrate portraiture.
That stewardship operates through a competition: artists submit work, judges select winners, and the prize distributes money and recognition. The source gives the pool's size and the judges' reasons for their choices, but doesn't say how they assessed the remaining submissions or what support, if any, artists who didn't win receive.
Other Artists, One Exhibition
Perth-based artist and honours student Yasamin Khadembashi won the $10,000 Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize for Immoral Warrior, a two-metre-long re-imagined self-portrait inspired by Iranian folklore. "It's an ode to Iranian women... it really shows the Iranian spirit," she said. "I wanted something to be distinctive for representing queer Iranian joy and pride."
Judges praised Khadembashi's use of rhinestones, synthetic eyelash extensions and metal leaf. "The artist did not play it safe, but their bravery paid off," they said. Sky Parra's Portrait of Scott Austic, Sharon Billinge's Celeste 3, Kim Harding's Kim with Black Cockatoo, Ben Howe's Matilda in Blue and Dapeng Liu's Guido also received prizes.
An exhibition of the 40 finalist works is on display at Perth's WA Museum Boola Bardip until November 29. The submissions came from across Australia. The awards and exhibition make the institution's selections visible, while the winning artists' own words explain what the work means to them.