June 20, 2024
Updated September 20 2024
You can listen to this article as a podcast-type thing created by google Notebook LM - presented by two people. I pointed the AI to this page and this is what it delivered. I had no control over what this AI says and in many ways it diverged from this essay, but it is fascinating. What do you think?
I recently had a chance to visit the Archibald/Wynne/Sulman and as always was mighitly impressed with the hang. The AGNSW really puts on a good show. One thing I noticed had changed from previous years - the picture labels now included prior exhibition history with the Archibald. They weren't consistent in providing this information, or explicit. They just wove mention of it into the narrative, which is fine. But I'm able to give an explicit count in the table below.
The number of artists who have been selected two or more times in the Archibald is 42.7% - one of the highest for any Australian prize.
We're going to do two things here - first let's compile a list of the 2024 finalists and see how many times they have been selected in the Archibald Prize. And then we'll take a look at the top multi-finalists for all time. In both instances I've let the nerds in the lab go over the numbers so let's hope they get it right.
Starting with the percentage of finalists that have been in a prior finalist exhibition for the Archibald:
2023 Total Finalists: 58 Re-Entries: 35 Re-Entry Rate: Approximately 60.3%
2024 Total Finalists: 57 Re-Entries: 32 Re-Entry Rate: Approximately 56.1%
The overall figure for all years the years (we don't go back beyond 1990) is 42.6%.
One more observation - if there were 1000 applicants for the 2024 prize and 27 were selected for the first time that puts the chance of being selected as 2.7% or a 1 in 34 shot of being selected.*
Checking the metrics for 2023 the first time finalist had a 2.4% chance of being selected as a finalist and in 2022 it was 2%. In 2021 it was 1.76%. or in other words odds of a previously unselected artist were 1 in 55.*
Artist
year
Previous Entries Count
Previous Years
Matt Adnate
2024
2
[2024, 2023]
Holly Anderson
2024
1
[2024]
Kris Andrew Small
2024
1
[2024]
Jill Ansell
2024
2
[2024, 2023]
Mostafa Azimitabar
2024
2
[2024, 2022]
Eliza Bertwistle
2024
1
[2024]
Drew Bickford
2024
1
[2024]
Natasha Bieniek
2024
9
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2019, 2016, 2014, 2013, 2012]
Karen Black
2024
3
[2024, 2021, 2020]
Mia Boe
2024
1
[2024]
Jessie Bourke
2024
1
[2024]
Janis Clarke
2024
1
[2024]
Emily Crockford
2024
4
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2020]
Dagmar Cyrulla
2024
2
[2024, 2021]
Paul De Zubicaray
2024
1
[2024]
Whitney Duan
2024
1
[2024]
Laura E Kennedy
2024
1
[2024]
Robert Fielding
2024
1
[2024]
Stephanie Galloway Brown
2024
1
[2024]
Shaun Gladwell
2024
2
[2024, 2015]
Jaq Grantford
2024
2
[2024, 2023]
David Griggs
2024
10
[2024, 2023, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2014, 2013, 2009, 2007]
Craig Handley
2024
1
[2024]
Tsering Hannaford
2024
10
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015]
Nicola Higgins
2024
1
[2024]
Yoshio Honjo
2024
3
[2024, 2022, 2020]
Ben Howe
2024
1
[2024]
Laura Jones
2024
4
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2019]
Daniel Kim
2024
2
[2024, 2023]
Sam Leach
2024
2
[2024, 2009]
Guido Maestri
2024
5
[2024, 2020, 2018, 2016, 2009]
Kelly Maree
2024
1
[2024]
Scott Marsh
2024
2
[2024, 2020]
Angus Mcdonald
2024
7
[2024, 2020, 2019, 2015, 2012, 2011, 2009]
Julian Meagher
2024
5
[2024, 2021, 2018, 2015, 2014]
Camellia Morris
2024
1
[2024]
Danny Morse
2024
1
[2024]
Anna Mould
2024
1
[2024]
Kirsty Neilson
2024
4
[2024, 2021, 2018, 2016]
Kean Onn See
2024
1
[2024]
Tim Owers
2024
1
[2024]
Laura Peacock
2024
1
[2024]
Meagan Pelham
2024
2
[2024, 2022]
Thea Anamara Perkins
2024
4
[2024, 2021, 2020, 2019]
Simon Richardson
2024
1
[2024]
Thom Roberts
2024
4
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2021]
Adrian Robertson
2024
1
[2024]
Sally Ross
2024
5
[2024, 2021, 2018, 2016, 2015]
Ben Smith
2024
2
[2024, 2018]
Nick Stathopoulos
2024
9
[2024, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2016, 2012, 2010, 2008, 2003]
Liz Sullivan
2024
1
[2024]
Natasha Walsh
2024
7
[2024, 2023, 2022, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016]
Oliver Watts
2024
3
[2024, 2023, 2021]
Digby Webster
2024
2
[2024, 2020]
Marcus Wills
2024
8
[2024, 2023, 2020, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2006]
Zoe Young
2024
4
[2024, 2023, 2016, 2014]
Caroline Zilinsky
2024
2
[2024, 2022]
What about the 25 finalists who have been selected for the first time in the Archibald. This is what we have in our db for their 3 most recent finalist exhibitions.
Artist
Archibald Year
Most recent prize exhibitions
Ben Howe
2024
The Lester Prize for Portraiture (2021), Doug Moran National Portrait Prize (2019), The Lester Prize for Portraiture (2019)
Camellia Morris
2024
Portia Geach Memorial Award (2017), Portia Geach Memorial Award (2016), Portia Geach Memorial Award (2013)
Craig Handley
2024
KAAF Art Prize (2023), Gosford Art Prize (2023), KAAF Art Prize (2022)
Robert Fielding
2024
Arthur Guy Memorial Painting Prize (2023), William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize (2023), Len Fox Painting Prize (2022)
Liz Sullivan
2024
Doug Moran National Portrait Prize (2022), Glover Prize (2018)
Janis Clarke
2024
Mosman Art Prize (2023), Waverley Art Prize (2023), Mosman Art Prize (2022)
Kean Onn See
2024
KAAF Art Prize (2023), National Emerging Art Prize (2023), Mosman Art Prize (2023)
Holly Anderson
2024
Mosman Art Prize (2023), Redland Art Awards (2022), Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award (JADA) (2022)
Mia Boe
2024
Koori Mail Indigenous Art Awards (2021)
Adrian Robertson
2024
Hadley's Art Prize (2022), Sir John Sulman Prize (2022), Alice Prize (2022)
Paul De Zubicaray
2024
Brisbane Portrait Prize (2023), Lethbridge 20,000 Small Scale Art Award (2023), Clayton Utz Art Award (2022)
Laura E Kennedy
2024
Paul Guest Prize (2020)
Anna Mould
2024
Dobell Prize for Drawing (2021)
Nicola Higgins
2024
Hornsby Art Prize (2023), Naked and Nude (2023), Mosman Art Prize (2022)
Kelly Maree
2024
The Lester Prize for Portraiture (2023)
Stephanie Galloway Brown
2024
Portia Geach Memorial Award (2023)
Eliza Bertwistle
2024
Brisbane Portrait Prize (2022)
Drew Bickford
2024
Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award (2017)
Jessie Bourke
2024
-
Whitney Duan
2024
-
Danny Morse
2024
-
Tim Owers
2024
-
Laura Peacock
2024
-
Simon Richardson
2024
-
Kris Andrew Small
2024
-
* Assuming ChatGPT got the math right.
By Martin Shub
2024 Finalists
All time multi-finalists
