Winner of the 2024 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture

What an honour! thankyou to everyone involved, and all the other wonderful artists.

The winner of the 2024 $50,000 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture is Ben Howe!

Judges' note provided by Rex Butler, Alec Coles OAM, Hannah Mathews:

Ben Howe's Cartagena Library reminded the selection committee of the German artist Hans Holbein's The Ambassadors (1533). It's a portrait of two self-possessed men sitting in a library staring confidently at the viewer, surrounded by the finer things of life. But the twist is that they are not the usual inhabitants of the room but playing a role. They are two gay men portrayed as their straight friends in a room that is not theirs. (The judges hope they have got this right.) But it doesn't really matter. It's a beautifully done painting that remains permanently enigmatic like that great Holbein.

 

Finalist in the 2024 Archibald prize

 

I’m delighted to announce that my painting of Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert and Sami Shah is a finalist in the 2024 Archibald prize.

Sami and Kylie are remarkable people, and it was an honor to paint them.