First established in 2015 as the Bayside Acquisitive Art Prize, the prize was relaunched in 2024 as the Bayside Painting Prize with an increase in prize money for the Major Prize to $25,000, making it one of the most generous non-acquisitive painting prizes in the country.

The $10,000 acquisitive Beckett Local Prize, named in honour of remarkable local modernist artist Clarice Beckett, is open to artists who demonstrate a connection to the municipality of Bayside or the work entered is of local subject matter. There is also a $1,000 People’s Choice Prize, announced at the conclusion of the exhibition.

The Bayside Painting Prize is the only annual painting prize held in Melbourne. The finalist exhibition brings together a broad range of artists from across Australia, both established and lesser known, whose varied approaches to the painted medium conveys the breadth and diversity of painting in Australia today.

A celebration of contemporary Australian painting, the prize is an important opportunity for Bayside City Council to add exceptional works of art with a local connection to its collection and to promote art and artists as a valuable part of the Australian community.