The Lord Mayor's Prize, the top award in the Brisbane Portrait Prize, will increase from $50,000 to $75,000 from 2027, making it one of Australia's richest art prizes. The funding boost brings the total prize pool to $139,500.
Brisbane City Council, which funds the Lord Mayor’s Prize, will see it increase by 50 per cent. Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the extra prize money was a way of supporting Brisbane’s talented artists and important stories. “As our city continues to grow and change, it’s important we celebrate our history, embrace our identity and support the artists who bring Brisbane’s stories to life,” Schrinner said.
Brisbane Portrait Prize chair Anna Reynolds said the prize was now of national significance. “As the world’s attention turns to Brisbane over the next six years, a place-based prize like this embodies our city, our arts, our culture and our character,” she said.
The Brisbane Portrait Prize launched in 2019 and is open to artists with a connection to Brisbane. In addition to the Lord Mayor’s Prize, smaller cash prizes are given in eight other categories, along with grants. The 2026 Lord Mayor’s Prize was won by Pat Hoffie for her portrait of her elderly father.
The increase places the prize among the nation’s richest art awards. At least seven Australian awards offer $80,000 or more for a single artwork. The most famous is the Archibald Prize at $100,000, while the Doug Moran Portrait Prize, formerly the richest at $150,000, has been on hold since 2023. In its absence, the most lucrative prize is claimed by a new award, the $125,000 Sorrento Art Prize.
Two rival prizes to the Brisbane Portrait Prize have emerged in Queensland in the past 12 months: the $100,000 Banksia Prize, open to anyone living in Australia or Australian citizens living overseas, will have its inaugural winner announced on November 12, and the $50,000 John D. Bowe Art Prize was won in July by Brisbane artist K.V. Kosala Wijegunaratna.
The current Brisbane Portrait Prize Finalists Exhibition at the State Library of Queensland continues until November 8, with daily visitation up 71 per cent over the past two years.
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Top prize amounts for selected Australian art prizes
Australian dollars
Doug Moran Portrait Prize is on hold since 2023. Brisbane Portrait Prize amount will increase from $50,000 to $75,000 from 2027. Source: The Age and Sydney Morning Herald
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Analysis
Why This Matters
The increase positions the Brisbane Portrait Prize among Australia’s most lucrative art awards, potentially attracting top artists.
The prize boost reflects Brisbane’s growing cultural ambition ahead of global attention.
The larger prize pool may encourage more artists to enter, enriching the city’s artistic output.
Background
The Brisbane Portrait Prize was launched in 2019 and is open to artists with a connection to Brisbane. It is funded by Brisbane City Council, which acquires the winning portrait each year. The prize sits in a competitive landscape of Australian art awards, including the Archibald Prize ($100,000), the Sorrento Art Prize ($125,000), and the recently established Banksia Prize ($100,000) and John D. Bowe Art Prize ($50,000). The Doug Moran Portrait Prize, once Australia’s richest at $150,000, has been on hold since 2023.
Key Perspectives
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner: says the prize increase is a way to support Brisbane's talented artists and important stories, and to celebrate the city's history and identity.
Brisbane Portrait Prize chair Anna Reynolds: says the prize is now of national significance and that, with the world’s attention turning to Brisbane, the prize embodies the city’s arts, culture and character.
What to Watch
The announcement of the inaugural Banksia Prize winner on November 12, which may affect the competitive landscape.
Whether the increased prize attracts more entries to the Brisbane Portrait Prize in 2027.
The continued growth in exhibition attendance, which has already risen 71 per cent in two years.
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
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SupportedThe Lord Mayor’s Prize, the Brisbane Portrait Prize’s top award, will rise from $50,000 to $75,000 from 2027.The Age - Latest News: “The Lord Mayor’s Prize, the top award in the annual Brisbane Portrait Prize, will increase by 50 per cent from $50,000 to $75,000 from 2027.”
SupportedThe increase puts the prize among Australia’s richest art awards.The Age - Latest News: “The funding boost puts the prize among the nation’s richest art awards”
SupportedThe increase brings the overall prize pool to $139,500.The Age - Latest News: “The funding boost puts the prize among the nation’s richest art awards and brings the overall prize pool to $139,500.”
SupportedBrisbane City Council funds the prize, which will increase by 50 per cent.The Age - Latest News: “The Lord Mayor’s Prize ... will increase by 50 per cent from $50,000 to $75,000 from 2027. ... Brisbane City Council funds the Lord Mayor’s Prize”
SupportedLord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the extra prize money was a way to support Brisbane’s talented artists and important stories.The Age - Latest News: “Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the extra prize money was a way of supporting Brisbane’s talented artists and important stories.”
SupportedSchrinner said: “As our city continues to grow and change, it’s important we celebrate our history, embrace our identity and support the artists who bring Brisbane’s stories to life,”The Age - Latest News: ““As our city continues to grow and change, it’s important we celebrate our history, embrace our identity and support the artists who bring Brisbane’s stories to life,” Schrinner said.”
SupportedBrisbane Portrait Prize chair Anna Reynolds said: “As the world’s attention turns to Brisbane over the next six years, a place-based prize like this embodies our city, our arts, our culture and our character,”The Age - Latest News: ““As the world’s attention turns to Brisbane over the next six years, a place-based prize like this embodies our city, our arts, our culture and our character,” she said.”
SupportedThe Brisbane Portrait Prize launched in 2019 and is open to artists with a connection to Brisbane.The Age - Latest News: “Brisbane Portrait Prize launched in 2019 and is open to artists with a connection to Brisbane.”
SupportedPat Hoffie won the 2026 Lord Mayor’s Prize for a portrait of her elderly father.The Age - Latest News: “The winner of the Lord Mayor’s Prize in 2026 was Pat Hoffie for her portrait of her elderly father .”
SupportedAt least seven Australian art awards offer $80,000 or more for a single artwork.The Age - Latest News: “at least seven award $80,000 or more for a single artwork.”
SupportedThe Archibald Prize is worth $100,000; the Doug Moran Portrait Prize was formerly worth $150,000 and has been on hold since 2023.The Age - Latest News: “The most famous is the Archibald Prize, which has been given out most years since 1921 and is worth $100,000. Australia’s richest art prize was formerly the Doug Moran Portrait Prize, with a top prize of $150,000. It has been on hold since 2023.”
SupportedIn the Doug Moran prize’s absence, the $125,000 Sorrento Art Prize is claimed to be the most lucrative prize.The Age - Latest News: “In its absence the most lucrative prize is claimed by a new award, the $125,000 Sorrento Art Prize”