A parade of famous faces have filed into the Art Gallery of NSW for Australia’s favourite art award, the Archibald Prize for portraiture. The Packing Room Prize is always the most highly-anticipated announcement to come from the exhibition, and today (Thu, May 30) the Art Gallery declared Northern Rivers-based street artist Matt Adnate as the winner of the 2024 Packing Room Prize – with his portrait of ARIA Award-winning Yolŋu rapper, dancer, artist and actor Baker Boy.
The artist and sitter are actually friends, which adds a wholesome edge to this stunning portrait. An avid music fan, Adnate first met Danzal Baker, known professionally as Baker Boy, a decade ago and was awed by his talent as a dancer. ‘Rhythms of heritage’ marks this artist’s second time as an Archibald Prize finalist, following his 2023 finalist painting of musician and former Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns.
Who is Baker Boy, the 2024 Packing Room Prize sitter?
A former Young Australian of the Year, Baker Boy is the first artist to achieve mainstream success rapping in Yolŋu Matha, which is his mother tongue. Known affectionately as the “Fresh Prince of Arnhem Land”, he rose to prominence as the winner of the Triple J Unearthed National Indigenous Music Awards in 2017. The winning portrait is not the first time that Adnate has painted Baker – the pair collaborated on the cover art for Baker Boy’s award-winning 2021 debut album Gela, which portrayed the musician as both a deeply connected Yolŋu youth and a rising star in the mainstream music world. Together, the pair won the 2022 ARIA Award for Best Cover Art.
Who is the 2024 Packing Room Prize winner, Matt Adnate?
Born in Victoria, Adnate immersed himself in urban street culture during his youth, embracing graffiti, music and skateboarding. He began his artistic career as a street artist, creating large murals in public spaces that blend hyper-real portraits, abstraction and surrealism. His signature murals are now instantly recognisable features of the skyline in metro and regional Australia, including in Sydney – his portrait of Aboriginal rights activist and Wiradjuri elder Jenny Munro is one of the best examples of street art in Sydney, and can be seen looming above Chinatown on the side of Novotel Darling Square. Speaking to Time Out at the Prize announcement, Adnate was stoked yet humble about winning the award. He would like to spend the $3000 prize money on a trip to Europe, but says that he will likely put it into school fees for his young family.
Speaking with Alannah Le Cross, Adnate said: “Most of my work since 2010 has been about painting Indigenous portraits; and you know, I’m a white fella that grew up on the streets of Melbourne, I didn’t have any connection as a teenager and as a kid. Part of my work is very much about making connections and collaborating with Indigenous people to be able to do the work that I do.”
Who picks the Packing Room Prize in 2024?
Now in its 33rd year, the Packing Room Prize, valued at $3000, is awarded to the best entry in the Archibald Prize as judged by the Art Gallery staff who receive, unpack and hang the entries. 2024 is the second year that the Prize has been selected by the new ‘Packing Room Pickers’ – Timothy Dale, Monica Rudhar and Alexis Wildman. The trio picked up the baton from former head packer Brett Cuthbertson, who retired in 2022 after 41 years of working at the Gallery. Speaking to the Time Out team at the announcement, the trio were elated to announce their winner – adding that the painting’s soulful eyes were a big contributor to the final decision. Last year, the Packing Room Pickers selected Andrea Huelin’s colourful painting of comedian Cal Wilson, who sadly and suddenly passed away in October 2023.
When does the 2024 Archibald Prize exhibition open?
The Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes 2024 exhibition and the Young Archie 2024 competition will be open to visitors at the Art Gallery of NSW from June 8 – September 8, 2024. On Friday, June 7, the Gallery will announce the overall winner of the Archibald Prize, along with the others. Find out more and purchase tickets over here.
This year, the Art Gallery received 2371 entries across the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes, which is the second highest number of entries received in the history of the prizes, following the record year in 2020. In total, 138 works have been selected as finalists across the prizes: 57 finalists in the Archibald, 41 in the Wynne, and 40 in the Sulman. There is a stunning range of artworks to explore this year – our favourite portraits include some of the cast of Heartbreak High.
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