he Australian War Memorial’s 2024 Napier Waller Art Prize is now open for submissions from current and former Australian Defence Force personnel.

Entrants can submit any original work in any visual art medium, with the winner to receive a $15,000 cash prize.

The winning work will be displayed alongside highly commended works at Parliament House in May 2024, and will be accepted into the Memorial’s National Collection.

Memorial Director Matt Anderson said the prize aims to promote artistic excellence while recording experiences of service.

“This prize displays the artistic endeavour, personal experiences and sheer talent of our service personnel,” he said. 

Head of Art at the Memorial, Laura Webster, said, “We are inviting entrants to contribute a contemporary view of their diverse experiences. The prize entries display the creativity and diversity of the Australian Defence Force.”

Last year, Mrs Anneke Jamieson won the 2022 Napier Waller Art Prize with her portrait, The Promotion, a painting featuring a uniformed servicewoman breastfeeding her baby.

Mrs Jamieson, a mother of three, took inspiration from her own experiences when creating the work.

“I dedicate her to the mothers that serve; to their sacrifices and conflicted hearts and to the families who support them,” Mrs Jamieson said in her artist statement.

Mrs Jamieson took first prize and the People’s Choice Award. The portrait is now part of the Memorial’s National Collection.

“Winning this prize means opening a door to the next chapter of my life,” she said.

Mrs Jamieson said the art prize provides a platform for current and ex-service personnel to tell their vitally important stories, and a “means for us to process and validate our story and be seen and heard”.

Finalists’ works will also be displayed on the Australian War Memorial’s website. The general public can vote in the People’s Choice Award, the winner of which will receive $5,000.

Entries are accepted from Friday 8 September and close on Sunday 17 December 2023.

Entry information is available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/nwartprize. Submissions may include the use of any visual art medium, including but not limited to painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, digital, decorative, sculpture, and installation.

Each entrant may address the theme of their choice, with the work being completed in the past two years from date of entry. The recipient of the prize will be chosen by a panel of judges and art experts.

Previous winners’ artworks can be viewed here.