This is a list of finalists for the 2009 Archibald Prize for portraiture (listed is Artist – Title).

• Anthony Bennett – self-portrait in the bathroom discussing beauty, bukowski and brett whiteley with my ex, now a stripper, who likes to dress as wonder woman
• Ann Cape – Lucy & friend
• Adam Chang – Spirit of an ancient culture
• Mike Chavez – Portrait of a bad muthaf***a
• Jun Chen – Ray Hughes and five other moods
• Zhansui Kordelya Chi – Good morning, this is Neil Mitchell
• Yvette Coppersmith – John Safran
• Sam Cranstoun – Gyton
• Leeanne Crisp – Considering Persephone. Portrait of Gay Bilson
• Ngaire Devenport – Ken Done
• Vincent Fantauzzo – Brandon (Brandon Walters) (Winner of the People's Choice Award)
• Hong Fu – Dame Elisabeth Murdoch
• David Griggs – Zoloft nation (self-portrait)
• Peter Hanley – Remembering Titian
• Robert Hannaford – Self-portrait
• Nicholas Harding – Margaret Whitlam
• Cherry Hood – David Helfgott
• Paul Jackson – Flacco's chariot (Paul Livingston) (Winner of the Packing Room Prize)
• Jasper Knight – Jasper Knight
• Richard Larter – Portrait of Nell
• Sam Leach – Marcia Langton
• Mathew Lynn – Heiress
• Abbey McCulloch – Nell
• Angus McDonald – Beyond
• Alexander McKenzie – Richard Clapton
• Guy Maestri – Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (Winner of the Archibald Prize)
• Nick Mourtzakis – A portrait of Alex Wodak
• Richard Onn – Coupe SX010F
• David Paulson & Michael Nelson Tjakamarra – Michael Nelson Jagamarra & singing rain story
• James Powditch – Peter Powditch is a dead man smoking
• Ben Quilty – Jimmy Barnes – there but for the grace of God no. 2
• Megan Roodenrys – Waiting for the day
• Paul Ryan – Mountain of Tom
• Jenny Sages – Heidi & Sarah-Jane ‘parallel lives’
• Megan Seres – The rest is silence (Brendan Cowell as Hamlet)
• Garry Shead & Adrienne Levenson – Soffritto di Lucio
• Mark Thompson – Greta Scacchi as Queen Elizabeth in Mary Stuart
• Jan Williamson – Nancy Kunoth Petyarr
• Michael Zavros – Ars longa, vita brevis

• Previous year: List of Archibald Prize 2008 finalists
• Next year: List of Archibald Prize 2010 finalists
• List of Archibald Prize winners

• Archibald Prize 2009 finalists, official website, Art Gallery of NSW