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Sydney Catholic Schools

Virtual Exhibition: 2026 Portrait Prize Winners Announced

The votes are in, the portraits are hanging, and the winners of Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) 2026 Portrait Prize have been announced.

Now in its fifth year, the SCS Portrait Prize serves as a powerful platform to recognise and celebrate outstanding Visual Arts students, setting a high standard of excellence for emerging talent across K–12. This year, 93 outstanding works from across 40 Sydney Catholic Schools have been selected to be showcased at the McGlade Gallery, Australian Catholic University Strathfield from 10-19 December 2026.

By capturing the likeness of someone close to their heart, students develop not only their artistic technique but also their emotional awareness and confidence as young creative thinkers. VIEW THE VIRTUAL GALLERY OF ALL ARTWORKS HERE

Congratulations to the following students whose artworks were recognised as the outstanding entries in their categories:

Executive Director’s Award
Ace Khanal | St Michael’s Catholic Primary School Stanmore

Director, Education & Research Award
Isabella Baran | Mount St Joseph Catholic College Milperra

Kevin Carragher, Director Education & Research, reflected on what made Isabella’s work stand out.

“Isabelle Baran’s portrait displays exceptional technical skill and sensitivity, capturing the dignity and inner life of her subject with remarkable intimacy in black and white. The confidence of her drawing, control of tone, and emotional depth speak to both the power of portraiture and the importance of the arts in helping young people see and honour the humanity of others. It is extraordinary to see such maturity at this age, and a delight to imagine what Isabelle will continue to create in the years ahead!”

5 – 8 Years

Winner | Ivanna Do | Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Randwick

Honourable Mention | Ace Khanal | St Michael’s Catholic Primary School, Stanmore

9 – 12 Years

Winner | Jonathan Goenawan and Chloe Hill | St Joseph’s Primary School, Riverwood and Holy Family Catholic Primary School, …

April 28, 2026|
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Virtual Exhibition: 2025 Portrait Prize Winners Announced

Sydney Catholic Schools is proud to announce the winners of the 2025 Portrait Prize competition. 

Now in its fourth year, the competition allows students from Kindergarten to Year 12 the opportunity of painting or drawing a portrait of someone well-known to them and who plays a significant role in their life.

This year presented a difficult task for the judges with a record high 403 artworks submitted from 43 different schools. 

VIEW THE VIRTUAL GALLERY OF ALL ARTWORKS HERE

Congratulations to the following students whose artworks were deemed to be the outstanding entries in their categories:

5 – 8 Years

  • Winner | Florence Akouri | All Hallows Catholic Primary School Five Dock
  • Honorable Mention | Sophie Louzada | St Mark’s Catholic Primary School Drummoyne

9 – 12 Years

  • Winner AND Director: Education & Research Director Award | Danny Ng | St Martha’s Catholic Primary School Strathfield
  • Honorable Mention | Matisse De Leeuw | Corpus Christi College Maroubra

13 – 15 Years

  • Winner | Rose Atherton | Clancy Catholic College West Hoxton
  • Honorable Mention AND Executive Director’s Award | Se Jin Oh | Marist Sisters’ College Woolwich

16 – 18 Years

  • Winner | Elsie Smith | Our Lady of Mercy College Burraneer
  • Honorable Mention | Shanaiah Chen Misquitta | All Saints Catholic College Liverpool

The winners in each category will now be entered into the Young Archie Competition at the Art Gallery of NSW. Honourable mentions in the Young Archie Competition will undergo a selection process and may have the chance to be featured in the Salon de Refuses, which is held at the SH …

February 26, 2025|
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Online exhibition: 2024 Portrait Prize Winners Announced

Sydney Catholic Schools is proud to announce the winners of the 2024 Portrait Prize competition. 

Now in its third year, the competition allows students from Kindergarten to Year 12 the opportunity of painting or drawing a portrait of someone well-known to them and who plays a significant role in their life.

There were some incredible submissions from right across our 147 primary and secondary schools, with 373 artworks submitted for judging, compared to the 294 from last year.   View the online Portrait Prize Gallery here

The following artworks were deemed to be the outstanding entries in their categories:  

  • Executive Director’s Award
    Veronica Lattouf – Our Lady of Mercy College Buraneer – “Joshua”
  • Director, Education & Research Award
    Nicole Cheng – Marist Sisters’ College Woolwich – “Tin”
  • 5 – 8 years
    Winner: Florence Akouri – All Hallows Catholic Primary School Five Dock – “My Teacher Mrs Hayes”
    Honourable mention: Naomi Kitnar – All Hallows Catholic Primary School Five Dock – “My Mum”
  • 9 – 12 years
    Winner: Alice Chen – St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School Ashbury – “Friday Night”
    Honourable mention: Savannah Roy – St Anthony of Padua Catholic College Austral – “Rashika’s Radiance”
  • 13 – 15 years
    Winner: Veronica Lattouf – Our Lady of Mercy College Buraneer – “Joshua”
    Honourable mention: Nicole Cheng – Marist Sisters’ College Woolwich – “Tin”
  • 16 – 18 years
    Winner: Poppy White – St Clare’s College Waverley – “My Brother”
    Honourable mention: Chioniso Mlambo – St Clare’s College Waverley – “Portrait of a Friend”

For the first time, submissions from the Portrait Prize will also be on display in an in-person at the Australian Catholic University’s McGlade Gallery. At this exhibition, students from ACU, as well as Sydney Catholic Early Childhood Services, will also be displaying portraits.

February 29, 2024|
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Portrait turns heads at Art Gallery of NSW

Winning her age category in Sydney Catholic Schools’ inaugural Portrait Prize was just the beginning for Tatum O’Connor.

The Mount St Joseph Milperra student’s portrait of her niece is now a finalist in the Young Archie competition, run by the Art Gallery of NSW. 

Winners will be announced this Saturday, 18 June.

Young Archie finalist Tatum O'Connor

Tatum said she was elated to see her work on display at the Art Gallery of NSW. 

“I have no words to even begin to describe my excitement and joy at being a finalist,” she said.

Chosen from a field of more than 2,400 entries her gouache portrait, titled Feeling Blue, took 20 hours to complete.

“Art showcases messages, symbols, thoughts, and ideas that words can’t convey . . . I find that extremely powerful”  – Tatum O’Connor

“I’ve been creating artworks for as long as I can remember with persistent encouragement from my family, teachers and peers,” Tatum said.

“Art allows me to express myself in a way no other hobby would.”

It seems third time’s the charm for Tatum, who has entered the Young Archie competition three years running.

“I admittedly lost a bit of hope of one of my portraits getting recognised, but winning the Sydney Catholic Schools Portrait Prize gave me motivation and hope,” she said.

“My niece is a bit too young to understand this milestone. I’ll give it to her someday and she’ll finally realise the impact this portrait and her existence have had on my life.”

ABOUT THE YOUNG ARCHIE COMPETITION

Beginning in 2013, the annual …

June 16, 2022|
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Online exhibition: 2022 Portrait Prize

The winning artists of Sydney Catholic Schools’ inaugural Portrait Prize have been announced and will now have their work displayed at the Art Gallery of NSW.

The four inaugural Portrait Prize winners are:

  • 5-8 year-olds – Grace MacFarlane – St. Patrick’s Catholic Primary School, Sutherland
  • 9-12 year-olds – Sofia Pirrello – St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Oatley
  • 13-15 year-olds – Tatum O’Connor – Mount St Joseph College, Milperra
  • 16-18 year-olds – Silaar Gorbthum – Freeman Catholic College, Bonnyrigg

The Portrait Prize attracted a strong field of 211 entries from talented young artists in Kindergarten through to Year 12.  

The annual Portrait Prize gives students the chance to recognise and appreciate someone well-known to them and who plays a significant role in their life by paying them one of the highest compliments – painting or drawing their portrait.

The theme for the inaugural Portrait Prize was: Me, You, Us. 

Dr Kate O’Brien, Director of Education and Research at Sydney Catholic Schools, said there was an extremely high level of artistic talent among the entries. 

“We were incredibly excited to see what artworks our students were going to produce and we certainly were not disappointed,” Dr O’Brien said. 

“Congratulations to our four inaugural winners on a fantastic achievement – they will now represent Sydney Catholic Schools in the Young Archie competition, which is run by the Art Gallery of NSW.”  

“The Portrait Prize is aligned with syllabus outcomes, and learning modules have been developed to be used remotely or face-to-face to help inform student learning,” Dr O’Brien added.

Each year entrants’ works will be exhibited in a virtual gallery on the Sydney Catholic Schools’ website, and prizes …

March 16, 2022|
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Recognising young artists

Sydney Catholic Schools’ inaugural Portrait Prize is giving students from Kindergarten to Year 12 the chance to have their work displayed at the Art Gallery of NSW.

The annual Portrait Prize celebrates students’ talents, and allows students to recognise and appreciate those close to them.

Students have been invited to produce a portrait of a person who is special to them – someone who is well-known to them and who plays a significant role in their life. The 2022 theme is: Me, You, Us.

“This is an amazing opportunity for schools to showcase their student’s artwork,” said Dr Kate O’Brien, Director of Education and Research at Sydney Catholic schools.

“The Portrait Prize is aligned with syllabus outcomes, and learning modules have been developed to be used remotely or face-to-face to help inform student learning.”

A virtual exhibition will be launched on Wednesday 16 March on the Sydney Catholic Schools website, and prizes will be awarded in each of the following categories:

  • 5-8 year-olds
  • 9-12 year-olds
  • 13-15 year-olds
  • 16-18 year-olds

The finalists will represent Sydney Catholic Schools in the Young Archie competition, run by the Art Gallery of NSW.

A large number of aspiring artists from across our schools have already submitted entries.

As part of the artistic process, many have reflected on culture and identity and how this is rooted in their family, school community, culture and nation. The brain-boosting benefits of an Amadeus music education

February 23, 2022|
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