The winning work is titled Flagship Mother Multiverse (Justene), and is painted in monochrome with touches of colour, showing the artist floating among the stars above the materials of making art.
"It feels unbelievable, can you imagine? I'm from a small country town originally, I moved to Sydney to go to art school, so to win the Archibald is amazing," said Fragar following the announcement of her win.
The title of the winning work comes from Williams' recent endurance performance in New Zealand - Making do rhymes with poo - about the labour of juggling a day job with art making and motherhood.
Fragar has been a finalist in the Archibald four times, and burst into tears when Art Gallery of New South Wales director Maud Page called Friday morning to tell her she had won.
"To be the winner of the Archibald Prize is a point of validation. It means so much to have the respect of my colleagues at the Art Gallery. It doesn't get better than that," she said.
She also paid tribute to her subject, Justene Williams, describing her as a dear friend and an extraordinary artist who has a "multiverse of artwork" spinning from her."Justene is incredible. I feel very fortunate that she allowed me to do this portrait. There is nobody like her," said Fragar.
"The work is a reflection on the experience of making art to deadlines, and the labour and love of being a mother."
The winner was selected from 903 entries and 57 finalists, with entries painted in the past year from at least one live sitting.
The award, widely regarded as Australia's most prestigious art prize, is judged by the trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Jude Rae has won the $50,000 Wynne Prize for landscape painting or sculpture, for the oil on linen work Pre-dawn sky over Port Botany container terminal.
The $40,000 Sulman Prize for genre painting went to Katoomba-based artist Gene A'Hern for Sky painting, beating a record field of 732 entries.
Ms Page, who was announced in March as the new director of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, said the Archibald winning painting showed two of Australia's great artists in conversation about what matters most to them.
"Julie Fragar has a sumptuous ability to transcend reality and depict her subjects technically but also psychologically," she said.
"Justene Williams is a larger-than-life character, a performer – cacophonous and joyous."
For the first time in 2025, women artists made up the majority of finalists in each of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prize competitions.
Earlier in May, the $3000 Packing Room Prize selected by the gallery's art handling staff went to Abdul Abdullah for a portrait of his friend Jason Phu.
The finalists for all three prizes will be on show at the Art Gallery of New South Wales from Saturday until August 17, before touring Victoria and across NSW.
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