Adam Cullen was born in Sydney in 1965. The artist was passionate about drawing from a very young age, and as a teenager drew cartoons for a local newspaper. He first gained recognition in the art world when he chained a decomposing pig's head to his ankle for two weeks. Cullen was associated with the Grunge art movement in the early 1990’s.
In 1997, much to the surprise of his contemporaries, he entered the Archibald prize. He was hung as a finalist in 1998 and went on to win the prize in 2000 with a portrait of actor David Wenham. He continued to enter the Archibald Prize regularly after winning and was subsequently hung as a finalist nine times. He was also instrumental in changing perceptions about the conservative nature of the Archibald Prize.