News

We are so thrilled to share that Richard Lewer has been announced as the winner of the Archibald Prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales 2026!

A six-time finalist in the Archibald Prize, Richard’s winning painting depicts Iluwanti Ken, a Pitjantjatjara Elder, senior artist and ngangkari (traditional healer). She is a finalist in this year’s Wynne Prize.

‘I spent time with Iluwanti at Tjala Arts in Amata, in the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands of South Australia. Although we have known one another for several years through shared exhibitions, being on Country together deepened my understanding of her presence and the responsibilities she carries,’ says Richard Lewer.

‘Iluwanti paints with an urgency I recognise. Her work depicts the walawuru tjukurpa, the story of the eagles. Birds appear in her drawings, paintings and ceramics as teachers of care, protection, provision and resilience, particularly for women and children. These lessons shaped how I approached this portrait. I wanted to convey her strength and attentiveness, and reflect the way she watches over others.

‘In person, Iluwanti is a small woman, but she carries immense, quiet authority. I painted her life size, so her presence meets the viewer directly. The yellow ochre background holds the intensity of the heat and light we were working in. She loves bright clothing, which feels inseparable from her spirit, and the traces of paint on her arm acknowledge her as a working artist, as if she has just stepped out of the studio.’

We congratulate Richard and Iluwanti!

An exhibition of finalist artworks will be presented from 9 May to 16 August 2026 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Pictured: Richard Lewer with his painting; Iluwanti Ken, 2026, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, 198 x 198 cm

Please join us for an Artist Talk with Sera Waters on Saturday 16th May from 2pm. 

Sera will speak about her current exhibition ‘Collared & Cuffed’.  About this body of work, Sera shares: “My artworks are made from labouring, working, fretting, and expelling energies that come up incredibly short against the suffering of others and ecologies. I’ve learned that in my family this is a multi-generational tactic to reckon with all that happens. In my times, deliberate hand-making draws upon this matrilineal activist tactic to rally against Capitalist greed and power which has always caused damage upon bodies of all kinds.  Each of these works, informed by a feminist understanding of textile practices, has documentation as its impetus; documenting what is happening, what happened, and valuing how archival records (like the family letters) have been cared for, for future generations to learn from.”

This will be the last day to visit our current exhibitions, Sera Waters’ ‘Collared & Cuffed’ and Sally Bourke’s ‘I’m a ghost, I’m gone’.

Hugo Michell Gallery acknowledges the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region, and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.

Pictured: Sera Waters in the studio, 2023. Photography by Aubrey Jonsson for InDaily.

We are thrilled to share that Richard Lewer has been announced as a finalist in the Archibald Art Prize with his portrait of Pitjantjatjara Elder and artist Iluwanti Ken. We also celebrate the inclusion of Marrnyula Munuŋgurr, Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu, and Carol Puruntatameri as finalists in the Wynne Art Prize.'

Richard Lewer, Iluwanti Ken, 2026, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, 198 x 198 cm, photography by Christian Capurro

About his work Richard shares: “In person, Iluwanti is a small woman, but she carries immense, quiet authority. I painted her life size, so her presence meets the viewer directly. The yellow ochre background holds the intensity of the heat and light we were working in. She loves bright clothing, which feels inseparable from her spirit, and the traces of paint on her arm acknowledge her as a working artist, as if she has just stepped out of the studio.”

Marrnyula Munuŋgurr, Dhawurr, 2025, natural pigment on bark, 194 x 87 cm

Marrnyula Munuŋgurr and Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu’s finalist artworks were exhibited at Hugo Michell Gallery as part of the 2025 Tarnanthi Festival in the exhibition ‘Wäŋa as Muse’, which featured works by a group of artists from Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Centre, each with a unique way of depicting the identity of the land which inspires them.

Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu, Buymarr homeland, 2025, natural pigment on bark, 107 x 80 cm, photography by Sam Roberts

We look forward to presenting a solo exhibition by Carol Puruntatameri at Hugo Michell Gallery from 12 November - 10 December 2026.

Carol Puruntatameri, Yipali and Purrukupali, 2025, natural pigment on bark, 166.5 x 90 x 30 cm, courtesy of Munupi Arts

An exhibition of finalist artworks will be presented from 9 May to 16 August 2026 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in the Naala Nura building.

We are delighted that Kate Just’s works ‘An Armour of Hope’ and ‘The Arms of Mother’ will be presented in the forthcoming exhibition ‘MOTHER: Stories from the NGV Collection’ at the National Gallery of Victoria at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, which will be launched on 27th March.

About these deeply personal pieces, that have been recently acquired by the National Gallery of Victoria, were produced during her PhD project exploring the relationship between textiles, skin, and touch, Kate shares: “Making their NGV debut are two of my works, which explore knitting’s metaphoric equivalency to skin. ‘An Armour of Hope’, 2012, took the form of a hand knitted chain-mail armour for our then recently adopted child Harper; while ‘The Arms of Mother’, 2012, were arm-length gloves for my own body embroidered with scars. The works materialised my own and Harper’s past familial losses, and our resilience and hope for the future.”

Curated by Sophie Gerhard and Katharina Prugger with assistance from Eva Christoff, the exhibition ‘MOTHER’ will be presented at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia from 27 March to 12 July 2026.

Pictured: Kate Just, An Armour of Hope, 2012, hand-knitted metal and silk, 104 x 45 x 4 cm; The Arms of Mother, 2012, hand-knitted and hand embroidered rayon and cotton, 92 x 32 x 2 cm. Images courtesy of the artist

Please join us for an Finissage for 'The Felling Place' and 'Land marks, with an artist talk by Julia Robinson on Saturday 11th April, 1pm-3pm.

Artist Talk from 1:30pm

Julia Robinson’s ‘The Felling Place’, currently showing at Hugo Michell Gallery, is a foray into eco-horror and plant horror: sub-genres that arise from our fractured relationship with the natural world and might be characterised by narratives where nature is not only sentient but malevolent. In these narratives, plant life may strike back at humans and horror comes from our terrifying encounter with ‘monstrous’ vegetation.

This will also be the final day to experience Bridie Gillman's solo exhibition 'Land marks', an exhibition developed in Yogyakarta, Indonesia (affectionately – Jogja). Each piece has been made in response to a patchwork of everyday observations – a fleeting moment while on a motorbike or a slower studied observation while waiting for a meal. Translated through colour, these seen things and places become landmarks through which the artist navigates around town.

Hugo Michell Gallery are proud to partner with Bird in Hand Winery for this finissage event.

Hugo Michell Gallery acknowledges the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region, and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.

We’re excited to share that William Mackinnon’s solo exhibition ‘Pheonix’ will be presented at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, opening this Saturday 21st February.

This exhibition reflects the artist’s experiences living and working with Aboriginal communities in the Western Desert and Kimberley regions. As a field officer with Papunya Tula Artists in 2008-2009, Mackinnon witnessed both the extraordinary beauty of Aboriginal Country and the complex realities of remote community life, where isolation and hardship are balanced with cultural vitality and humour.

Presented with permission from Papunya Tula Artists, these paintings represent the artist’s reckoning with his experiences of that time, an empathetic meditation on beauty and survival.

‘Pheonix’ will be on display the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory from 21 February to 24 May 2026.

Pictured: William Mackinnon, Crossroads, 2019, synthetic polymer paint, oil, automotive enamel, glitter on linen, 200 x 300 cm, National Gallery of Australia Collection