Figurative painter and cartoonist Mitch Cairns has won the 2017 Archibald Prize for his portrait of his partner and fellow artist Agatha Gothe-Snape.

The accolade, which is judged by the trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, has a colourful history, with debate, division and legal challenges.

Mr Cairns, who is based in Sydney, had been shortlisted for the Archibald Prize four times and finished runner-up twice.

Mitch Cairns's 'Agatha Gothe-Snape' won the 2017 Archibald Prize. ( Supplied: Art Gallery of NSW )

He was also a studio assistant for 2000 Archibald Prize winner Adam Cullen.

Mr Cairns will receive $100,000 for his triumph.

"Artists need a lot of support and I do have that in spades," he said.

The award was established in 1921 by bequest from magazine editor Jules Francois Archibald.

Entries to the Archibald Prize, widely recognised as Australia's most prominent portraiture prize, must be painted in the past year.

Some of the finalists for the 2017 Archibald Prize, including Anh Do's painting of Jack Charles (C), wait to be hung. ( ABC News: Stephanie Dalzell )

Embracing and resisting

In the portrait, Ms Gothe-Snape is seen sitting on a mat, embracing and resisting "what it is to be fixed".

Jun Chen's 2017 Archibald entry, titled Ray Hughes. ( Supplied )

"Ultimately this is what is most attractive about Agatha," Mr Cairns said.

"She embodies an uncompromising agency whilst having the grace to accept the ready complications inherent within our life as artists.

"I composed this portrait with love in the full knowledge of its inevitable and palpable quake."

Jun Chen's painting of gallery owner Ray Hughes finished runner-up.

It was the second time Mr Chen had used his first art dealer as the subject of an Archibald Prize entry, with Mr Hughes also featuring in 2009.

David Gonski, from the gallery's board of trustees, said choosing between Mr Chen's work and Mr Cairns's entry was difficult.

"It took us some time, wandering between the two wonderful paintings to decide who would be the winner," he said.

This year, there were 822 Archibald Prize entries and 43 finalists.

Striking APY landscape

Artist Betty Kuntiwa won the Wynne Prize for 2017. ( ABC News: Nicole Chettle )

Betty Kuntiwa Pumani's painting Antara won the Wynne Prize and had special significance to her, because it is inspired by her mother's country in South Australia's Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands.

She will receive $50,000 for taking out first prize in the award, which is for landscapes.

The landscapes of the area are influential in the works of Ms Pumani and her late mother, Milatjari Pumani, who was also a prominent artist from the area.

The rocky desert terrains of Antara are depicted in striking reds.

Betty Kuntiwa Pumani's Wynne Prize-winning entry ( Betty Kuntiwa Puman )

Ms Pumani told the gathering at the Art Gallery of NSW that it was an honour for her work to beat an imposing field.

She said her paintings were strong because the culture and family ties were strong in the area.

Colonisation in the spotlight

Meanwhile, Joan Ross won the Sir John Sulman Prize for her work titled Oh history, you lied to me.

First presented in 1936, the Sulman Prize is for subject or genre paintings and is judged by a single artist — a job that this year fell to Tony Albert.

Joan Ross's Sulman Prize 2017 winner, titled Oh history, you lied to me. ( Supplied )

Ms Ross's work, which shines a light on Australian colonisation, beat almost 600 entries to the $40,000 prize.

"I'm a little bit shocked," she said.

"I always feel like my work is the culmination of a whole community of people coming together."