Archibald prize 2026: Richard Lewer portrait of artist Iluwanti Ken wins $100,000

Richard Lewer has been awarded the 2026 Archibald prize for his portrait of Pitjantjatjara elder, traditional healer and senior artist Iluwanti Ken. The New Zealand-born, Melbourne-based artist – a six-time Archibald finalist – was announced as the winner of the $100,000 prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales on Friday. The judging panel, comprised of the gallery’s trustees, selected the work unanimously from a field of 59 finalists whittled down from 1,034 entries. At the ceremony, gallery director Maud Page said of the winning work, “What can be said? You see the picture. You see the strength of it, you see the poise. You see all of the things that we know makes Australia unique in the world.” In his artist statement accompanying the work, Lewer described spending time with Iluwanti – herself a finalist in this year’s Wynne prize – at Tjala Arts in Amata, in the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands of South Australia. “Being on Country together deepened my understanding of her presence and the responsibilities she carries,” he said. “In person, Iluwanti is a small woman, but she carries immense, quiet authority. I painted her life‑size, so her presence meets the viewer directly. The yellow ochre background holds the intensity of the heat and light we were working in. …