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Melbourne artist Fiona O'Byrne won the $50,000 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture with her oil-on-linen painting titled "Luci, now," depicting her daughter sitting quietly on a stool. Judges praised the work's tenderness and intimate portrayal of the relationship between artist and sitter. The prize is part of Australia's largest portraiture competition, which this year received over 1,100 submissions, setting a new record.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Fiona O'Byrne, a Melbourne-based artist, won the $50,000 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture with an oil-on-linen painting titled "Luci, now," which depicts her 20-year-old daughter. The prize is part of one of Australia's most prestigious and lucrative portraiture competitions, featuring a total prize pool of $140,000. O'Byrne has been painting her children for over a decade, with this work capturing the subtle nuances of their evolving relationship. Judges praised the portrait's softness, tenderness, and the ease conveyed in the subject's expression, highlighting the intimate connection between artist and sitter. The competition also awarded prizes to other notable works like "Sky Parra's Portrait of Scott Austic," "Sharon Billinge's painting titled Celeste 3," "Kim Harding's Kim with Black Cockatoo," and "Dapeng Liu's Guido."
Written for “Lester Prize Winner Announced” on 2026-10-09,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Melbourne-based artist Fiona O'Byrne has won the $50,000 Richard Lester Prize for Portraiture for an oil-on-linen painting of her daughter.
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O'Byrne → base → daughter
O'Byrne has been painting her children for more than a decade and her winning work — titled Luci, now — depicts her 20-year-old daughter sitting on a stool with a neutral expression on her face.
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daughter → paint → face
"Sitting together, you really see time move, and you see how the relationship changes," O'Byrne wrote about the piece.
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O'Byrne → sit → piece
"It's an opportunity for me to stop and spend time observing her in this moment of her life.
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me → stop → life
"Painting her was just a way of holding onto that fierce, generous heart."
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Painting → paint → heart
Judges Alan Dodge, John McDonald and Bryony Nainby said they were captivated by the softness and tenderness of the portrait conveyed through an "unlaboured handling of paint".
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they → say → paint
They highlighted the intimacy between the sitter and artist reflected through the apparent ease in the subject's expression, the way light was captured in the work, and the details of the jacket and nail varnish.
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light → highlight → varnish
O'Byrne picked up a paintbrush for the first time at 36 and has spent the past 10 years dividing her time between painting and landscape architecture.
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O'Byrne → pick → painting
Emerging artists in the spotlight
Perth-based artist Yasamin Khadembashi won the $10,000 Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize for her two-metre long re-imagined self portrait Immoral Warrior.
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Khadembashi → base → portrait
The judges commended Khadembashi's bold and adventurous use of materials, including rhinestones, synthetic eyelash extensions and metal leaf.
"
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judges → commend → rhinestones
The artist did not play it safe, but their bravery paid off," the judges said.
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judges → play → it
Sky Parra's Portrait of Scott Austic, Sharon Billinge's painting titled Celeste 3, Kim Harding's Kim with Black Cockatoo and Dapeng Liu's Guido were also awarded prizes.
The Lester Prize is one of Australia's most lucrative portraiture prizes, with a total prize pool of $140,000.
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Prize → title → 140,000
It received more than 1,100 submissions this year, the most in the prize's history.
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It → receive → history
Founding partner of The Lester Prize, Russell Lester, said this reflected the impact the prize had on the arts community.
"Our ongoing stewardship of Australian talent and creativity is of utmost importance," Mr Lester said.
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Lester → say → importance
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