Meet the Winners of the 2025 Small Works Art Prize

Brunswick Street Gallery has announced the winners of the 2025 Small Works Art Prize, showcasing exceptional talent across painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, weaving and more.

The prize is Australia’s largest open-call art prize for artworks measuring 35 x 35 x 35cm or less. This year, it received entries from 660 artists practicing throughout Australia and beyond. It was judged by Emily Sexton, Director of Programming at ACMI.

Millie Hopton was awarded First Prize for The Boot Room, a beautifully detailed postcard painting that captures the nostalgia of domestic spaces and the complexities of gendered labour. Sexton praised the work, stating, “This evocative, moving piece invites the viewer to lean in, and respond with intimacy to an intimate subject matter. This carefully detailed postcard painting of lost or forgotten moments is a beautiful choice for domestic still life portraiture. Hopton has deftly captured ordinary scenes for the beauty they possess, on their own terms.” Hopton takes home a $5,000 cash prize.

Lois Waters’ Pleat 5 earned Second Prize for its striking use of texture and tension. Sexton noted the work’s “exceptional contradiction of delicacy and strength” and its ability to evoke emotional landscapes. Waters receives a $1,000 cash prize.

Philip James Mylecharane was awarded the BSG Prize for Open Partitions, a work that mixes geometric shapes with organic forms. The curatorial team praised the piece for its subtlety and visual language, and Mylecharane will receive an exhibition in the 2025-26 schedule.

Other prize winners include:

• Work on Paper Prize: Jordan O’Connor for Power Lines
• Object Prize: John Budd for Echoes of Kin
• Photography Prize: Rose Morgan for How it Feels
• Honourable Mentions: Hanako Müller for Untitled Landscape, Samuel O’Malley for The Cost of Living, and Jason Rufov for Your Touch Changed Me.

Visit Brunswick Street Gallery for more information on the prize and artists.