Florence Rodway, Jules François Archibald, 1921. Art Gallery of New South Wales. ©AGNSW

Who was J F Archibald?

J.F. Archibald had no desire to become famous and during his lifetime, he shunned publicity and remained evasive and enigmatic. A portrait of him, commissioned by the Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, was made after his death and remains as one of the pictorial records of a man who avoided having his photograph taken. Yet J.F. Archibald is the man behind one of Australia’s oldest and best known
art prizes for portraiture.

He was born in Victoria in 1856, christened with the name John Feltham. When he was fifteen, he started his career in journalism on a country newspaper in Warrnambool, Victoria. His passion for newspapers lead him to Melbourne searching for work in ‘the big smoke’. He lived a bohemian life, frequenting Melbourne’s city boarding houses, streets, theatres and cafes. A life he imagined to be quite European, which led him to change his name to Jules François and later to leave money in his will for a large fountain to be built in the middle of Sydney’s Hyde Park to commemorate the association of France and Australia in World War I.

Realising the power of print, in 1880 he and a friend founded the Bulletin magazine, a radical journal for its time addressing issues of nationhood, culture and identity. This journal was influential in shaping opinions and raising issues in the public’s consciousness. He also employed the best young artists to be its illustrators. His interest in art led him in his later years to serve as a Trustee for the Art Gallery of New South Wales, keen to promote the work of younger artists and writers. In 1900, he commissioned Melbourne portrait artist, John Longstaff to paint a portrait of poet Henry Lawson for fifty guineas. Apparently he was so pleased with this portrait, that he left money in his will for an annual portrait prize.

The Archibald Prize, from its outset, has aroused controversy while chronicling the changing face of Australian society. Numerous legal battles and much debate have focused on the evolving definitions of portraiture. It has become one of the most popular annual art exhibitions in Australia.