Henry Salkauskas

Behind is Always the Sun, 1964

Mosman Art Prize


Established in 1947, the Mosman Art Prize is Australia's oldest and most prestigious local government art award.  It was founded by the artist, architect and arts advocate, Alderman Allan Gamble, at a time when only a small handful of art prizes were in existence in Australia and the community had very little support and few opportunities to exhibit their work. 

Over the past 71 years the Mosman Art Prize has developed in stature to become Australia’s most prestigious municipally funded art prize with a national profile. As an acquisitive art award for painting, the winning artworks collected since 1947 form a splendid collection of modern and contemporary Australian art, reflecting all the developments in Australian art practice since 1947.

The inaugural winner in 1947 was a young Margaret Olley. Since the prize has been won by scores of artists including Guy Warren, Grace Cossington Smith, Weaver Hawkins, Nancy Borlase, Lloyd Rees, Anthony Galbraith, Elisabeth Cummings, Tim Johnson, Guan Wei and Michael Zavros among many others. Past adjudicators also include notable Australian art figures such as Margaret Preston, John Olsen, Tim Storrier, Jenny Sages and Edmund Capon.

Tim Johnson

Maitreya, 1999

Judith White

Cultivation (Series) Floodplain, 1998

Francis Giacco

Polyptich, 1997

Elisabeth Cummings

The Music Room, 1996

Diana Portingale

Marmalade and Tea, 1995

Jenny Sages

3am, 1994

Nicholas Harding

Newtown Station, 1993

Kilmeny Niland

Vita with Violet, 1992

Bob Marchant

The Young Don Bradman, 1992

Anthony Galbraith

Untitled 56, 1991

Rodney Milgate

Landscape with Figures, 1991

John Bartley

Bull Ants, Blowflies and Burnt Chops, 1990

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