Dobell Drawing Prize
PARTNER | NATIONAL ART SCHOOL
The Dobell Drawing Prize is Australia’s leading prize for drawing. Established more than three decades ago at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, it has been presented by the National Art School since 2019.
The Prize is an unparalleled showcase for contemporary drawing, celebrating technique and innovation. Attracting around 1,000 entries, a prize of $30,000 is awarded by a distinguished guest artist judge and supporting expert panel, with the winning drawing acquired by the National Art School.
The judging panel selects between 50 to 60 drawings for exhibition. In addition to the prize winner, there are two highly commended awards of $5,000 each and a People’s Choice award of $2,500. After its Sydney showing, the exhibition tours regional public galleries in NSW.
The Dobell Drawing Prize (DDP) takes place every two years, in alternate years to the Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial at the Art Gallery of NSW (AGNSW).
Founded in 1993 at the AGNSW, the DDP was relaunched in 2019 in partnership with the National Art School. The exhibition sets out to go beyond traditional media to explore what a contemporary drawing can be. Recent exhibitions have featured a broad range of media such as light, metal, video, clay, and human hair, and explored three-dimensional drawing.
In keeping with the Foundation’s mission of increasing participation and community outreach, the Dobell Drawing Prize has toured more than 20 public regional art galleries in the past decade, with each exhibition supported by a dedicated public program.
2025
Winning work 24-1 by Rosemary Lee, 2024, pencil on paper, image courtesy the artist and National Art School Gallery © the artist
#24
NATIONAL ART SCHOOL
14 September 2024 – 12 January 2025
The 24th edition showcased the work of 56 finalists, selected from 965 nationwide entries by distinguished guest artist judge, Vernon Ah Kee, and panel members, Dr Yolunda Hickman and Paula Latos-Valier AM. 2025 winner NAS alumna, Rosemary Lee, received the #24 Dobell Drawing Prize. In her winning work 24-1 (2024), Lee observes tonal and compositional profundity in everyday life. As the Prize is acquisitive, the work has become part of the National Art School’s significant collection built over the past 120 years.
24th Dobell Drawing Prize Winner
Rosemary Lee
Artist Rosemary Lee with her winning artwork, 2024, pencil on paper, image courtesy the artist and National Art School Gallery © the artist
-
“The decision to award the 24th Dobell Drawing Prize to Rosemary Lee for the work ‘24-1’ was unanimous. We were most impressed by the level of visual intensity the artist has achieved in this work both through its vibrant colour and in the extraordinary detail of the composition. The artwork’s exploration of the urban landscape and gentrification of the Sydney suburbs of Ashfield and Summer Hill, has produced an image capturing a broader sense of transience and the omnipresence of construction sites in our cities today. It questions the cultural and historical value of place, through the lens of the artist’s personal connection.”
-
Ambridge shares: “My primary practice is drawing. To have three very different, some say demanding, works exploring the human condition accepted for the Dobell Drawing Prize over the years is such a rare privilege and wonderful recognition of my artwork.
For many years I have struggled with drawing’s place in my art practice. To me there always seems to be an external pressure suggesting that drawing is a pathway to something ‘bigger’ like a painting or a sculpture.
The longevity and gravitas of the Dobell demands that drawing be seen as the final work in its own right. It’s been a long journey from drawing at the kitchen table as a child with my mother, an artist in her own right.”
Highly Commended
Leonardo Uribe
Dad’s Last Portrait, Death Certificate,2024, Human Hair On Paper
People’s Choice Winner
Margaret Ambridge
Cheek by jowl, 2024, charcoal and rainwater on paper
-
Badra Aji
Margaret Ambridge
Chesca Athas
Michael Bell
Ellen Bird
Cath Brophy
Osvaldo Budet
Peter Burke
Tom Carment
Genevieve Carroll
Tracey Clement
Hannah Cooper
Sal Cooper
Artemisia Cornett
Maryanne Coutts
Jan Davis
Philip Faulks
Todd Fuller
Yvette Hamilton
Eamonn Jackson
Susan Jacobsen
Martin King
Anke Klevjer
Rosemary Lee
Jennifer Mills
Andrew Nicholls
Nadia Odlum
Julie Paterson
Nic Plowman
Jaime Prosser
Imogen Eve Rowe
Linda Schneider
Amy Sibenaler
Sally Simpson
Julian Aubrey Smith
J9 Stanton
Floria Tosca
Claire Tozer
Shonah Trescott
Leonardo Uribe
Paul White
Agus Wijaya
-
Manning Regional Art Gallery (Taree), Slim Dusty Centre (Kempsey), Blue Mountains Cultural Centre and Cowra Regional Gallery.
Eamonn Jackson, Aftermath, 2021-2023, graphite on paper, image courtesy and © the artist
Brian Martin, Methexical Countryscape: Gadubanud #2, 2024, Charcoal on paper
Maryanne Coutts, Days (Dress ODE), 2023 -2025, handmade paper, collage, watercolour, gouache, ink, synthetic polymer paint, crayon, pencil, biro, antique damask silk, buttons, beads, embroidery cotton, single channel digital animation, 4k, colour
Michelle Molinari, Postcards of the 21st Century #1 and #2, 2024, charcoal and chalk on paper
J9 Stanton, Shadow of a disappearing landscape, 2024, aluminium, mesh
Osvaldo Budet, Black Boy Souvenir (abbreviated title) 2024, chromogenic print and handmade ink from Maitland coal on paper
Cath Brophy, No Place Like Home - Dihua Street, 2024, charcoal and mized media on paper
Jennifer Mills, Head in Hands, 2023, watercolour and pencil on paper
Claire Tozer, The Wetlands, 2024, pencil on paper
Ellen Bird, Dressing the Afternoon, 2024, graphite on birch board
Anke Klevjer, Viewing at Sunset, 2023, paper clay, underglaze pencil and paint, clear glaze
Julie Paterson, Menindee Memorial Loop, 2024, cotton, linen, thread
2023
Winning work: Jane Grealy, Maria’s Garden, Scheme C 2022, pastel on paper, 67 x 108 cm, 97 x 133 cm (framed). Winner, Dobell Drawing Prize, 2023, image courtesy and © the artist.
The #23 exhibition featured 64 finalists from 881 entries. The judging panel was made up of distinguished guest judge, Catherine O’Donnell, and panel members Paula Latos-Valier AM and Katrina Cashman.
2023 winner, Jane Grealy received both the 23rd Dobell Drawing Prize and the People’s Choice Award for her pastel on paper Maria’s Garden, Scheme C. Grealy’s practice is inspired by her work as an architectural illustrator, using observations of both existing and imagined buildings, landscapes and spaces. She lives and works in Meanjin (Brisbane, QLD).
#23
NATIONAL ART SCHOOL
31 March - 10 June 2023
23rd Dobell Drawing Prize Winner
Jane Grealy
Jane Grealy, ‘Maria’s Garden, Scheme C’ 2022, pastel on paper, 67 x 108 cm, 97 x 133 cm (framed).
-
Catherine O’Donnell said about the judges’ decision:
“Jane’s work is beautifully executed, very skilful but also expanding drawing to a different level with her layering of architectural elements. It was a unanimous choice. We did look at lots of different works, the standard was very high so it was a tough decision, but we came back to this one. It’s about so many things, the balance between nature and the built environment, about time passing, the past, present and future. The work looks outstanding in the gallery, it’s very well deserved.”
The piece depicts Grealy’s neighbour Maria’s garden, whose philosophy is “waste not, want not”. Immigrating from war-torn Italy, Maria has worked and thrifted to cultivate her garden and supply her family with food and ensure nothing is wasted. This notion is reflected in the detail of the drawing, which is overlaid with a “wire frame” digital perspective line drawing to indicate present and future ways of living. With her suburb under pressure from new developments, homes and gardens are being rapidly demolished, Maria’s garden will one day be lost.
-
Grealy shares: “My opportunities have come late in life. When I was young I was told I could not be an artist, there was no art at my high school. I became an architectural illustrator and while I was always working to other people’s specifications, I did my own arts apprenticeship, and in the end it gave me access to a life I’ve always wanted as a practising artist.
When I first visited the National Art School in Sydney two years ago, I immediately felt that I was where I should have been 50 years ago, there just wasn’t the opportunity. The Drawing Prize has given me the opportunity.”
Highly Commended
Jennifer Tighe
‘Lives of Others 1,’ 2021, charcoal and graphite on Fabriano cartridge paper
Highly Commended
Jayanto Tan
Jayanto Tan and ‘Waterfall in the Moon Garden,’ 2022, used teabags, tea stain thread, bamboo sticks
People’s Choice Winner
Jane Grealy
Maria’s Garden, Scheme C 2022, pastel on paper
-
Website in construction
-
The exhibition toured seven regional public art galleries: Bathurst, Grafton, Cowra, Tamworth, the Glasshouse Regional Gallery (Port Macquarie), the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre, and the South East Centre for Contemporary Art (Bega).
Sandra Kiris ‘Becoming’ 2022, chalk, pastel, and charcoal on paper, 100 x 105cm
Teo Treloar, 'The Plague' ,graphite pencil on 640gsm Fabriano artistic hot pressed paper, 31 x 31cm. 2022.
Jayanto Tan’s ‘The Waterfalls in the Moon Garden’ created from used teabags and tea stain. Installation view Dobell Drawing Prize 2023
John Bokor, “Two Rooms” 90 x 110cm
Sue Field, "Drift No.3"
Jane Grealy, ‘Maria’s Garden, Scheme C’ 2022, pastel on paper
Julie Rrap, Drawn Out 2022, video, 12 mins, dimensions variable, courtesy the artist
2021
Juan Macleod, 'Borderlands – Between NSW and QLD', 2020, pastel on paper, 15 parts: each 28 × 36 cm, 156 × 120 cm (overall), courtesy the artist and King Street Gallery on William © the artist
#22
NATIONAL ART SCHOOL
26 March - 22 May 2021
The judging panel of the #22 DPP - distinguished guest artist Lucy Culliton, Michelle Belgiorno (artist and SWDAF Chair) and Simon Cooper (artist and Head of Studies at the National Art School) - selected 64 finalists from 948 entries.
2021 winner Euan Macleod received the Prize for his pastel on paper, Borderlands – Between NSW and QLD (2020).
22nd Dobell Drawing Prize Winner
Euan Macleod
Euan Macleod with his work, Borderlands – Between NSW and QLD, 2020, pastel on paper
-
Guest Judge Lucy Culliton said:
“In the initial stage of judging, I was surprised by the variety of materials artists use to make drawings – from ceramics, stitching and painting to digital technology. In judging the finalists, we selected some of these works because of their drawing merits. The initial round was judged digitally, so when I saw the finalists hung it was a pleasure and a surprise. My final decision came down to a fundamental drawing practice, with my top three finalists being Amanda Penrose Heart, Martin King and Euan Macleod. Euan’s work is fast and immediate drawing, describing a landscape in a blur of activity. There is an accurate freshness I am drawn to, making Euan the winner of this year’s Dobell Drawing Prize.”
-
Macleod shares: “I’m really rapt. It’s bloody fantastic. I’m not known for my drawing. I’ve entered the Dobell a few times but never even been hung before but I do do a shitload of drawing but not necessarily to show. Lately I’ve been doing even more drawing because it is so much easier to do. It all fits into a little bag and I carry it wherever I go.”
Highly Commended
Leonardo Uribe
Immigration Form 80 Page 3, 2019, human hair on paper
Highly Commended
Amanda Penrose Hart
‘Reg,’ 2019, graphite on paper
Highly Commended
Martin King
Jayanto Tan and ‘Waterfall in the Moon Garden,’ 2022, used teabags, tea stain thread, bamboo sticks
People’s Choice Winner
Joanna Gambotto
Joanna Gambotto, Hill End Interior 1 (Denningtons Cottage: Kim and Lino’s), 2020, charcoal and pastel on paper,
-
Website under construction
-
The exhibition toured six regional galleries: Logan Art Gallery (Qld), Bank Art Museum Moree, Gosford Art Gallery, Cowra Regional Art Gallery, Griffith Regional Art Gallery, and the Glasshouse Art Gallery (Port Macquarie).
Murat Urlali’s The Gift of Art, Self portrait, A Relief after Francesco del Cossa
Martin King, Strangerland #1
Catherine O'Donnell, Loving Heart, 2020
Catherine O'Donnell, Detail of Loving Heart, 2020
Amanda Penrose Hart, Reg, 2019, graphite on paper
2019
WINNER Justine Varga, Photogenic Drawing 2018, chromogenic photograph, 151.5 × 120 cm
#21
NATIONAL ART SCHOOL
28 March - 25 May 2019
The #21 DPP received 788 entries from which 57 finalists were selected.
The Prize was judged by artist Ben Quilty, Michelle Belgiorno (artist and SWDAF Chair) and Simon Cooper (artist and Head of Studies at the National Art School) with the winning work selected by Ben.
2019 winner Justine Varga received the Prize for her work, Photogenic drawing (2018), chromogenic photograph.
Tony Albert was Highly Commended for his work Old Sins Cast Long Shadows (2018), ink drawing.
21st Dobell Drawing Prize Winner
Justine Varga
Justine Varga with her work, Photogenic Drawing 2018, chromogenic photograph, 151.5 × 120 cm
-
Guest Judge Ben Quilty said:
“Drawing is a fundamental part of many visual art practices. The winner of the Dobell Drawing Prize #21 uses drawing in the most meaningful and sophisticated way. Her work is a distillation of so many components of our collective lives. Drawing plays a pivotal role in this artist’s exploration of us all. The winning work is a powerful, playful and sophisticated 21st-century drawing and a deserved winner.”
Highly Commended
Tony Albert
Tony Albert, Old Sins Cast Long Shadows 2018, ink on archival paper, 233 × 76 cm
-
Guest Judge Ben Quilty said:
“Highly Commended goes to an artist who is relentlessly and skilfully re-writing dialogues about Australian histories,’ says Quilty. ‘Drawing underpins his practice. Old Sins Cast Long Shadows uses the most simple drawing techniques to tell a formidably sophisticated story.”
Helen Eager, "Prototype" 2019
Whale Mirra on Being Human Nauru Files 2019
Catherine O’Donnell, "Sirius," 2018, Charcoal on paper.
Madeleine Joy Dawes, "Rebuild," 2018, Pen on cotton paper.
Kim Spooner, "Long After Magritte, " 2018, Charcoal on cotton rag paper
George Gittoes , LI’L DAVE LI’L DAVE Guns Kill, 2018, Oil-based spray paint on canvas
Lily Mae Martin, "Inexorable," 2018, Ink on cotton paper
Tanya Chaitow, Frame of mind (1 and 2), 2018, Conté crayon, charcoal, gouache, collage on paper
Peta Minnici, "Dusk, Hill End," 2017, Pen on paper
Monica Rohan, "Don’t Look Down, Don’t Think About Falling," 2018, Ink on paper
Tony Albert , "Old Sins Cast Long Shadows" 2018, Ink on archival paper
Luke Thurgate, "The Great Menace," 2018, Charcoal, pastel on paper
Locust Jones, "October 2018, " 2018, Ink on glassine, LED light boxes
Penny Coss, "Meteorites (heavy fall) " 2018, Graphite on paper on aluminium
Joshua Charadia, "Peripheral View 18," 2018, Willow charcoal on paper.