Entries now open for Dobell Drawing Prize #23

The $30,000 acquisitive Dobell Drawing Prize at the National Art School in Darlinghurst is a biennial competition showcasing the expanded field of drawing. Submissions for the prize in 2023 are now being accepted until Monday 29 August 2022.

Presented in partnership with the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, the Dobell Drawing Prize is Australia’s leading exhibition celebrating drawing innovation and attracts entries from acclaimed artists around the country. The prize explores the enduring importance of drawing within contemporary art practice, in its many different forms and materials.

A panel of three, including artist Catherine O’Donnell as guest judge, will select the finalists to be installed in the NAS Gallery at the National Art School. The Dobell Drawing Prize #23 exhibition is open to the public from Friday 31 March to Saturday 10 June 2023, with the winner of the prize announced at the exhibition opening on Thursday 30 March 2023.

“This is such an important and fitting event for the National Art School, where all our students develop their drawing practice as a fundamental component of the degree,” said NAS Director and CEO Steven Alderton. “Drawing is such a core creative discipline and as an artform crosses all other mediums as one of the most exciting developments in contemporary art.”

“It is wonderful to continue our long-term partnership with the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, which also supports other important initiatives at NAS such as the HSC Intensive program for high school students,” said Alderton.

“We are delighted to announce NAS alumna and acclaimed artist Catherine O’Donnell as our guest judge. Catherine has been a finalist herself, and we look forward to her involvement, given her expertise and passion for drawing,” said Sir William Dobell Art Foundation Chair, NAS alumna and former Dobell Drawing Prize judge Michelle Belgiorno.

The judging process will occur in two phases. After individually reviewing each digital entry, Catherine O’Donnell (artist), Paula Latos-Valier (Art Director, Sir William Dobell Art Foundation) and Katrina Cashman (NAS Gallery Manager and Senior Curator) will convene as a panel in November 2022 to select approximately 50 finalists. The outright winner will be selected by the panel in March 2023.

The National Art School first hosted the Dobell Drawing Prize in 2019, judged by artist Ben Quilty, who selected Justine Varga as the winner. In 2021, Euan Macleod won the Dobell Drawing Prize #22 for his work Borderlands – Between NSW and QLD, judged by artist and NAS alumna Lucy Culliton.

The prize was first established in 1993 and until 2012 was presented by the Art Gallery of NSW, which now presents the Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial in alternate years to the Dobell Drawing Prize.


Entries for the Dobell Drawing Prize #23 are now open and close Monday 29 August. Finalists announced Monday 21 November 2022. Winner announced Thursday 30 March 2023. An exhibition of finalists will be held at the NAS Gallery from Friday 31 March to Saturday 10 June 2023. For more information, visit: www.nas.edu.au for details.

Image: Dobell Drawing Prize #22, 2021 (Installation View) – photo by Peter Morgan