The importance and value of our senior Territorians will again be celebrated with the prestigious Portrait of a Senior Territorian Art Award, now open for entries.

This year the Portrait of a Senior Territorian Award exhibition will align with the 40th anniversary of self-Government in the NT, celebrating senior Territorians who have made a significant contribution to achieving this milestone.

Acting Senior Director Arts NT and Screen Territory, Angela Hill, said the Portrait of a Senior Territorian Art Award is the only portrait prize in the Northern Territory.

“The Portrait of a Senior Territorian is an excellent showcasing opportunity for local artists to raise their profile and gain recognition for their portraiture skills while celebrating the achievements and contribution of senior Territorians to our community,” Ms Hill said.

“The artworks will be showcased at the beautiful Main Hall of Parliament House and the winning piece will become part of a significant collection that reflects the history of the Territory.

“Our seniors helped to build everything that makes the Territory great, and it is wonderful to see their incredible stories recognised annually with this award.”

The Portrait of a Senior Territorian Art Award originally started as a one-off event to celebrate the International Year of the Older Person in 1999 with support from the Northern Territory Government and the Moran Arts Foundation who founded the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize in 1988.

The Portrait of a Senior Territorian Award and Exhibition has been hosted in Parliament House every year since (with the exception of 2017) with the winning paintings being acquired by the NT Government and held as a part of the Government House Foundation collection.

In 2017, the Award and Exhibition were launched and hosted for the first time at Araluen Cultural Precinct in Alice Springs and the award was acquired by Araluen and then toured to Darwin and hosted at the Darwin Entertainment Centre.

In 2018, the Award and Exhibition will be hosted in the Main Hall at Parliament House from 12-19 October. The announcement of the award winners will take place on Friday 12 October 2018 for:

o   First prize $7,000 Acquisition Award

o   Second prize of $2,000, and

o   Third prize of $500.

The People’s Choice Prize of $1000 (determined by public votes submitted across the exhibition period) will be announced on Monday 22 October.

The Exhibition will be open to the public on Saturday 13 October 2018, until Friday 19 October 2018.

To find out more go to https://dtc.nt.gov.au/poast