Gorton portrait that clicked

When photographer Nathan Kelly looked through the viewfinder at former Prime Minister Sir John Gorton seated before him, he knew he had the photo he came for.

In the image that came from that shoot, an aged Sir John is poised at a window, as if looking into the light of his future.

Above his head is a portrait of his past by Victor Munoz, of Gorton as a Prime minister in his prime, painted in 1971.

"Sir John really liked the photo," Strathfield photographer Nathan Kelly says.

"It doesn’t matter if you have an interest in the liberal party or not, it is an interesting portrait."

I was 21 when I took the photo. I was not even born when he was Prime Minister, but that’s one moment in the man’s life when everything came together in one frame."

The image now hangs in The National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, alongside paintings and photographs by renowned Australian artists.

A couple of years ago kelly put out a best selling book- Collective Wisdom – which sold 17,000 copies.

The book is a series of portraits and interviews with famous Australians which Kelly compiled with his brother.

Kelly was reading about the Portrait Gallery and thought the curators might be interested in his work.

He emailed the photo of Sir John Gorton to Director Dr Andrew sayers who phoned back in 20 minutes to say he wanted it.

At 25, Nathan Kelly is the youngest artist to have work in the permanent collection of the Gallery.

His interest in the medium developed in senior high school years.

After leaving St Patricks, Kelly struck up a rapport with singer Nick Cave and travelled to Melbourne to document Cave’s tour.

There he met other photographers and it dawned on him that he like the lifestyle.

"I thought if you can do this for a living, it’s got to be good."

Kelly studied at Sydney College of The Arts in Balmain and is now studying for a teachers qualification.

"Sometimes with portrait photography I have an idea of what I’m looking for, other times I just have to roll with it," he said.