Faces take over the Portrait Gallery in the National Gallery of Ireland on the 14th of November, and nobody has to pay to look at them. Two exhibitions open side by side that day: the AIB Portrait Prize and the AIB Young Portrait Prize. Both run until the 14th of March 2027, which is plenty of time for a day of appreciating art.
The Portrait Prize consists of an expert judging panel picking a shortlist, and the winning artist goes home with €15,000 plus a €5,000 commission for inclusion in the National Portrait Collection. Two further works get a Highly Commended nod and €1,500 each. That commission matters more than it sounds. The National Portrait Collection is still growing, and the competition is one of the ways it grows. A painter wins, and the country’s collection gets a new face in it.
The Young Portrait Prize is open to young people across Ireland, up to the age of 18, and the judges choose finalists in four age categories: 6 and under, 7 to 11, 12 to 15, and 16 to 18. Think about the youngest group for a second. Somebody aged six or under has looked at a person, decided what mattered, and put it on paper with total confidence.
Both competitions exist to get more people interested in contemporary portraiture, and to raise the profile of the National Portrait Collection while they are at it.
The winners will be announced at a ceremony in November 2026, so the results are only weeks away.
The exhibitions are curated by Dr Brendan Rooney, Head Curator at the National Gallery of Ireland, and Sinéad Rice, Head of Education and Public Programming at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Anyone who can’t get to Dublin has two more chances. After the National Gallery run, both exhibitions travel to Galway Arts Centre from the 3rd of April until the 27th of June 2027, then to Limerick City Gallery of Art from the 9th of July until the 15th of August 2027.
Written By: Pranamya Shetty
Edited By: Hazel Hunter
