The Lester Prize for Portraiture is one of Australia’s most prestigious and highly regarded portrait prizes - an award that places artists and the community front-and-centre.

The Lester Prize Youth Awards helps nurture the next generation of Australian portrait artists, encouraging high school students nationwide to explore creative expression, build confidence and allows them to share their stories with the wider community.

This year's thirty exceptional student finalists from across Australia, were chosen across three categories: Years 7–8, 9–10 and 11–12, with 10 artworks chosen in each group. Three of the finalists are former finalists, with one being a previous winner. Two thirds of the finalists are from Western Australia.

The prize pool available to the young artists is now worth $6,500.