Chris Lawry

I have had a lifelong love of art but just didn’t have enough time for it until my children grew up and I retired fairly young from teaching and needed a new occupation. My training has also been lifelong, and quite studious (I know how to study and learn) but mostly informal. I have a BA, Dip Ed, and Dip Lib.

Until I visited the ‘L’Estampe Contemporaine’ in Paris in 2009 I was a weekend oil painter. I came home fired up by the idea of printmaking. The first medium I tried was lino print, and I have loved it ever since. While I usually work in black and white lino print I also dabble in colour but my greatest love is black and white linoprint.

These days I describe my styleas tonal because I like to create layers of grey within my black and white prints.

My biggest ongoing inspiration for my prints has been forests. I spent a significant part of my childhood in far East Gippsland, and now live in the Dandenong Ranges with the forests of Mt Dandenong giving me joy. Usually I take photos and draw directly onto the lino block. I also gain inspiration from other Artists but my favourite printmaker is Ukrainian Artist Olesya Dzhurayava. The Grosvener School Modern of Art is an institution from which I also gain inspiration.

As I look back at my career in Art there have many exciting events such as being part of the PCA Print Commission in 2013, my first solo at PG Gallery titled ‘Forests’ in 2020 was a highlight, and being part of ‘Not Your Kitchen Lino’ at Burrinja in 2024 was another highlight.



I am hoping this year to learn the Japanese Mokuhankan printmaking method which I think is the most beautiful form of colour printing. Hopefully this will add to my desire and skill to become more expressive.