Courtney Act immortalised with dismembered Barbies, sequins and a beer can

Discarded fingernails, sequins, a pair of high heels, a beer can, and a dismembered Barbie doll have been used to capture the likeness of Australia's most celebrated drag queen.

A glittering new portrait of Courtney Act has been unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.

The large mosaic by artist Paul Yore is an eclectic assemblage of thousands of objects, each meticulously placed with tweezers, to pay tribute to the queer icon.

Courtney Act has spent more than two decades in the public eye and is an internationally celebrated drag performer, queer advocate and television personality.

She is the alter ego of Queensland-born Shane Janek, who never felt like he fit into masculine norms growing up.

"Imagine beaming back to 14-year-old me, listening to the Spice Girls, wearing my platform buffalo boots to school," Act said.

"In Brisbane in the 90s there was certainly nobody like me around and not anybody like me portrayed in the media.

"So when an institution like the National Portrait Gallery commissions a portrait of you, it feels very validating."

Among the objects used in the portrait is an old Nokia phone — the same model used by a young Shane Janek to come out to his parents.

There is also a statue of Aphrodite, an array of Australian iconography, and a football — something Act admits she has never played.

Artist Paul Yore said he was initially intimidated when he was approached by the gallery to create the portrait.

"I've obviously followed Courtney's career for decades now and idolise her as an icon as so many of us in the queer community do," he said.

The process took him about a year, and Yore said he felt a great sense of responsibility to "get it right".

"At different times, I did hear Courtney's voice in my head being like, 'Oi, what are you doing? Why are you putting that there? Get that off my face!'"

Growing up queer in a Catholic household, Yore said he took inspiration from illuminated icons — including the Virgin Mary — to make the portrait.

National Portrait Gallery director Bree Pickering described the artwork as a "monument to queer culture".

"At a distance, this is a glossy likeness of Courtney, yet up close thousands of small details tell another story, about a big life lived without apology," she said.

The portrait is now the first artwork you see when you walk into the gallery.

"Well, they say that you should always open with a strong number," Act said.

"I think that when people turn in, and they see this, they're just going to have a smile on their face.

"I'm very grateful that this portrait has been created of me and that it celebrates drag and queerness in all of its sparkle."