Graeme Drendel has won the $150,000 Doug Moran National Portrait Prize — Australia's richest painting prize — for his portrait of figurative painter and fellow finalist Lewis Miller.The announcement was made this morning at Juniper Hall in Sydney's Paddington.In a poetic turn, both artists submitted portraits of each other and were selected as two of the 30 finalists for this year's prize.The Melbourne-based artist addressed a roomful of media, fellow finalists and sitters, describing the win as a "complete surprise"."I've entered a few portrait prizes over the years … but I'm just gobsmacked because it is a bloody small portrait. I've always entered small portraits, never for a moment thinking they're going to win," said Drendel.The 69-year-old artist has previously been a finalist in the Art Gallery of NSW's Archibald Prize for portraiture and its Sulman painting prize, and was a finalist for the Moran in 2021 and 2017 — but this is his first major award win.Recent winners2012: Leslie Rice2013: Nigel Milsom2014: Louise Hearman2015: Warren Crossett2016: Megan Seres2017: Tim Storrier AM2018: Lynn Savery2019: What2021: Vincent Fantauzzo, Andrew Greensmith, Michael Vale"Of course, it's an amazing prize to win monetarily, but more than anything it's a sense of recognition. I've been painting for 40 years and I've never won a prize before," Drendel told ABC Arts."It's a bit of a pa
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