Finding The Archibald, the three-part ABC series celebrating the centenary of our most popular arts prize, has rated over 800,000 viewers.
Hosted by art lover Rachel Griffiths, episode one tallied 805,000 viewers after 28 days based on the combined statistics from first-run, available encore and iView.
It captured 577,000 viewers overnight (metro and regional) when it premiered on June 15.
In the series, Rachel goes on a cultural romp through Australia’s most coveted and controversial arts prize, deep-diving into the 100-year history of the Archibald.
Finding The Archibald also follows Natalie Wilson from the Art Gallery of NSW on her pursuit to curate an ambitious exhibition that celebrates 100 years of Australia’s oldest and most-loved portrait award.
Rachel’s journey into Archibald history becomes a personal mission, as she attempts to find one portrait that encapsulates the changing face of Australia over the last century.
Along the way Rachel catches up with Archibald artists such as Ben Quilty, Natasha Bieniek, Vincent Namatjira, Abdul Abdullah, Wendy Sharpe and Vincent Fantauzzo and subjects including Asher Keddie, Wendy Whiteley, Deng Adut, John Howard and Penelope Seidler.
Travelling across the country, Rachel immerses herself in a face-fest and cultural reflection of our nation throughout the past century. Can she find one portrait that not only encapsulates this changing face of our nation, but that will stand the test of time for another 100 years?
Rachel Griffiths said: “It’s been a thrill to collaborate with Mint Pictures on Finding The Archibald because I’m a huge art enthusiast and have been surrounded by art all my life – my mum is an artist and I’m married to an artist. And so being asked to look at thousands of portraits was a pleasure, although being challenged to single out just ‘one’ was a confronting mission.
“But for me it’s really all been about the journey; plunging through a century of fascinating and revealing Australian stories as reflected through our annual face-fest. And while it’s a wonderful series about art, at its core it’s really a series about us, our identity and our image of ourselves. I hope it provokes discussion and debate.”
Production credit: A Mint Pictures production in association with Magdalene Media.
Principal production investment from Screen Australia and the ABC. In association with Screen NSW and Film Victoria.
Series Director: Ariel White. Series Producer: Dan Goldberg. Executive Producers: Adam Kay and Rachel Griffiths. ABC Manager Factual: Julia Hanna. ABC Managing Editor, Factual: Richard Huddleston. Head of Factual and Culture: Jennifer Collins.
