Presented by Lismore Regional Gallery in partnership with the Koori Mail Newspaper, this biennial award has rapidly established itself as a significant national platform for contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, showcasing ambitious new work from emerging and established artists across the country. The 2026 award sees an expanded prize pool, including a $20,000 Major Award and a new $3,000 Youth Award (ages 18 to 25), underscoring the Award’s growing national profile and commitment to supporting the next generation of Indigenous artists. This year’s Guest Judge is Dr Kimberley Moulton, a Yorta Yorta curator, writer and academic widely recognised as one of Australia’s leading contemporary curatorial voices.
Major Award Finalists
Michelle Anderson, Kieron Anderson, Sonya Breckenridge, Luke Close, Ralph Close, Chris Curtis, Louise Daniels, Joe Dhamanydji, Jodie Dowd, Troy Firebrace, Margaret Rarru Garrawurra, Donna Gayford McLaren, Maddison Gibbs, Jodie Harris, Melinda Ingram, Clare Jaque Vasquez, Kieren Karritpul, Virginia Keft, Jaymi Lawrence, Tara Lloyd, Zali Morgan, Amber Morris, Kent Morris, Jodie Munday, Gail Naden, Ian Nicholas, Tracey Piccoli, Ross Potter, Brandi Salmon, Damien Shen, Kyle Slabb, Valerie Smith, Jasmin Stanford, Douglas Tamwoy, Anthony Walker and Jeremy Worrall.
Youth Award Finalists
Cameron Cooper, Keesia Close, Levi Roberts, Monique Vuong and Mayarr Yanner.
Guest Judge
Dr Kimberley Moulton is a Yorta Yorta woman, curator and writer. Leading research and curatorial practice in connecting histories and futures at the intersection of historical collections and contemporary art, her work centres Indigenous and Global Majority art histories and ecological, cultural and relational creative practices. She is Senior Curator Exhibitions at RISING, Melbourne's International Arts Festival and recently held tenure as the Adjunct Curator Indigenous Art Tate Modern (2023-2026). She holds a PhD in curatorial practice from Monash University Melbourne and in 2023 was made Curator Emeritus at Museums Victoria. Kimberley has written extensively on curatorial practice, Indigenous art and museums globally and is an alumni of National Gallery Australia Wesfarmers Leadership Program, Dhiraamalang and the inaugural International Fellow for the program. Kimberley is currently Deputy Chair of the Board, Shepparton Art Museum and a director on the board of the Adam Briggs Foundation.
