The Art Gallery of New South Wales has opened the 2026 instalment of its annual Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes, presenting finalists and winners in a single exhibition at Naala Nura, Lower level 2, from 9 May to 16 August 2026. The gallery describes the prizes as the most anticipated annual exhibition of Australian art, bringing together contemporary portraiture, landscape painting, figurative sculpture and subject painting in a format that has become a fixture in its calendar.
The 2026 exhibition continues the Archibald Prize’s focus on storytelling through portraiture. According to the gallery, Australian and New Zealand artists use the medium to explore “the beauty and complexity of our times,” with each portrait shaped by the person the artist has chosen to paint and by what that image reveals. The Wynne Prize again spans Australian landscape painting and figurative sculpture, while the Sulman Prize covers subject painting, genre painting or mural projects.
Each year, the trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales judge the Archibald and Wynne Prizes, while the Sulman Prize is assessed by a guest judge. For 2026, the gallery says the Sulman will be judged by artist Del Kathryn Barton. The exhibition brings together finalists and winners across all three awards under one ticket, with the gallery noting that a single entry provides access to the full prize display.
This year’s presentation is accompanied by ‘Young Archie 2026’, a free display in Kaldor Hall on the ground level showing work by young artists aged 5 to 18. The gallery also provides a free self-guided children’s trail inside the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman exhibition. The Young Archie finalists are on display until 16 August 2026, and the gallery’s Artmail announcement links the display with the main prize exhibition as part of the same visit.
The 2026 exhibition is ticketed, with standard adult admission listed at $30 on weekdays and $32 on weekends and public holidays. Concession, youth, family, flexi and mobility access ticket options are also offered, while children under 12 and companion card holders enter free. The gallery says members can see the exhibition for free, and 2-for-1 tickets are available on Wednesday nights from 5pm to 10pm.
The show is supported by a programme of guided tours and related events through August. These include daily tours at 12pm and 2pm, Wednesday tours at 5pm, Mandarin-language and Japanese-language guided tours, audio-description tours, an exclusive viewing and wine tasting event, and a drop-in workshop on portraiture. The gallery also offers digital labels online, special children’s labels in the gallery, large-print materials and aids for visitors with low vision, as well as a hard copy booklet of finalist wall labels for use within the exhibition space.
