Ted Markstein lives and works in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, where he paints and runs a computer business. He studied art in Italy for a year and paints what interests him. His portraits are usually inspired by issues surrounding the sitter and there is often some controversy embedded in his work. The composition of his portrait of Sir Garfield Barwick is loosely based on a portrait of an Italian gentleman by the 16th century Venetian artist Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), and the likeness of Sir Garfield Barwick is taken from a small black and white photo of him that Markstein cut out of the Sydney Morning Herald. The portrait was hung as a finalist in the 1981 Archibald Prize and was donated by the artist to the High Court in 2010.