Archibald Prize 1954
Entries: 182 (77 selected)
Exhibition dates: 22 January to 27 February 1955
Only selected works were exhibited; each artist could submit up to two works
After so often disagreeing with the decisions made by the Gallery trustees, the Contemporary Art Society (CAS) presented its own award to one of works in the Archibald Prize, chosen not just from finalists but also from entries that had been rejected for display.
The CAS judges gave their prize to Michael Kmit for his self-portrait and highly commended both Judy Cassab’s portrait of Kmit and Jack Carington Smith’s portrait of Professor AL McAulay. All three works had also been selected for the exhibition, although the Archibald went to Ivor Hele for his portrait of the then prime minister, Robert Menzies. The Gallery bought the McAulay portrait for the collection.
- Mary Abbott - Miss Wendy Walker
- John Allcot - Sir James Bisset CBE, RNR, RD, LLD (Cantab)
- S Antonini - Miss J Green
- Alan Baker - Self-portrait
- Stanley Ballard - Kathlyn Moore
- Reshid Bey - Self-portrait
- Dorothy Bradford - Sir Richard Harris, C.M.G.
- Mary Brady - Lady Berryman
- Lina Bryans - Frank Stone, Esq
- Ernest Buckmaster - Mrs GBS Falkiner
- Charles Bush - Self-portrait
- Reg Campbell - Self-portrait
- Des Carew-Reid - The cutter
- Jack Carington Smith - Professor AL McAulay
- Jack Carington Smith - Frank D Clewlow, Esq
- Judy Cassab - Mr W Fairfax
- Judy Cassab - Michael Kmit
- R Clements - Reverend LG Ball, MA
- Ronald William Crawford - Judge Dethridge
- William Dargie - Sir Gordon Bell, KBE
- William Dargie - Professor Harold Dew, PRACS, FRCS (Eng)
- Alda de Francesco - Self-portrait
- Alda de Francesco - Sir Henry Manning
- Aileen R Dent - Major General AC Short, CB, OBE
- Dudley Drew - Very Rev BA O'Farrell, OCarm, PhD, STL
- Mary Edwell-Burke - Sir Hudson Fysh, KBE, DFC
- John Flexmore - Mrs Sidney Smith
- Sam Fullbrook - Don McLeod of Pilgangoora
- John Barclay Godson - RH Moppett, Esq
- John Barclay Godson - John Dease, Esq
- Vaughan Murray Griffin - Dr Lionel Bull
- Henry Aloysius Hanke - Robert Johnson, VPRAS
- Henry Aloysius Hanke - Alderman The Hon EC O'Dea, MLC
- Newton Hedstrom - Thomas Martin, Esq
- Ivor Hele - Jean Hele
- Ivor Hele - Rt Hon RG Menzies, PC, CH, QC, MP (Winner: Archibald Prize 1954)
- Sali Herman - Mrs Maree Phillips
- Sali Herman - Bishop CV Pileher
- Robert Hofmann - Elizabeth Kirkhope, MA
- Edith L Holmes - Noel Norman, Esq
- Graeme Inson - His Grace Dr Mannix, DD, LLB
- Graeme Inson - Mrs Barbara Hore-Lacy
- Peter James - The Hon WE Dickson
- Reginald Jerrold-Nathan - Byram Mansell FRSA
- Garrett Kingsley - Mr Adolph Basser
- Garrett Kingsley - Beverley
- Michael Kmit - Self-portrait
- Harold Lane - Mrs Hector Livingston
- Harold Lane - Mr GR Rickards
- Peter Laverty - Peter Rushforth
- David Lawrance - JH Reynolds, Esq, MA
- Lucy Lee - SF Kellock, OBE
- Montague McDonald - Air Marshall Sir Richard Williams, KBE, CB, DSO
- Mary Elizabeth McLeish - Portrait
- Charles Meere - Hartley MacAlister
- Timothy Messack - Self-portrait
- Kevin Meynell - Portrait
- Max Middleton - Grevor Molyneux, Esq
- Graham Moore - Wally Peeler, VC
- Graham Moore - Cr RH Solly
- Arthur J Murch - John Santry
- David Nance - Reginald Hooper, FRCS
- L Scott Pendlebury - Nigel Manning, BSc
- Hazel Phillips - Roy Maling
- William Pidgeon - JE Cassidy, QC
- Clifton Pugh - Professor R Downing
- Betty Quelhurst - Rev M Henderson
- John Thomas Rigby - Self-portrait
- J H R Rousel - Mr Aubrey Halloran, OBE, BA, LLB
- Arthur Rydge - GK Townshend, Esq
- Joshua Smith - Wallace C Wurth, CMG
- Joshua Smith - His Honour Judge HL Lamond
- C G Taylor - Self-portrait
- Graham A Thorley - Sir John Behan, KtB, MA, BCL, LLD
- Dora Toovey - Professor Emeritus Griffith Taylor
- Percy I White - Rabbi Dr HM Sanger, PhD
- Reinis Zusters - William Ferguson, Esq