Napier Waller Art Prize

Applications for the 2026 Napier Waller Art Prize are now closed.

The Napier Waller Art Prize encourages artistic excellence, promotes the transformative power of creativity, and raises awareness of the experiences and talent of all current and former service personnel in the Australian Defence Force.

The 28 finalists for the 2026 Napier Waller Art Prize are:
Open Information

Michael Armstrong

Larissa Sarina Baglieri

Ron Bradfield Jnr

Roger Brennan

Phillip Brooks

Steven James Bryant

Robert William Cooper

Michael Patrick Cosgrove

Thomas Crowhurst

Suzanne Curtis

Ryan Jared Dix

Catherine Mary Flood

Leah Catherine Gail Gordon

Anneke Jamieson

Daniel Kirkham

Andrew Martin

Stacey Menz

Dave Morrissey

Haley O’Shea

Rebecca Polonski

Peter Porteous

Ben Pronk

Gregory Alexander Scott

Kat Rae

Matt Redwood

Paul John Robertson

Sarah Elizabeth Vandepeer

David Whitfield

The winner will receive a $15,000 cash prize and their work accessioned into the Australian War Memorial collection.

Finalists’ works are displayed on the Australian War Memorial’s website for the general public to vote for the People’s Choice award, the winner of which will receive $5,000.

The judging panel for the 2026 Napier Waller Art Prize consists of:

Matt Anderson, PSM, Director, Australian War Memorial
Lieutenant General Natasha Fox, AO, CSC, Chief of Personnel, Australian Defence Force (representing the Chief of the Defence Force)
Alison Frame, Secretary, Department of Veterans’ Affairs
Emma Kindred, Curator, National Portrait Gallery
eX de Medici, former Official War Artist
Laura Webster, Head of Art, Australian War Memorial.

Learn more about the Napier Waller Art Prize
Open Information

Established in 2018, the Napier Waller Art Prize is named after Mervyn Napier Waller, an Australian artist who enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in August 1915.

In May 1917, he was wounded in the right arm while serving with the 11th Field Artillery Brigade during the battle at Bullecourt. His arm was later amputated, and during his convalescence he learned to write and draw with his left hand, saying, “an artist draws with his head, not his hands”.

In 1937, Waller was chosen to create the mosaics and stained glass windows in the Australian War Memorial’s Hall of Memory.