PAINTER, PRINTMAKER Kris Waldin

I studied art and design at Christchurch Polytechnic, graduating in 1992 with a diploma of Visual Communications. I’ve since worked as a graphic designer and illustrator along with some time away travelling before taking up painting full-time in 2010.

Working from my home studio, overlooking the Oxford Ranges, the local environment is a constant source of stimulation, from the unfolding drama of the nor’wester above foothills to small foraged treasures like birds nests, skulls and feathers. I’m currently working on a series of prints and paintings that take inspiration from my immediate environment; family heirlooms, treasures gathered while travelling, the views from home and general family life.

I enjoy working with a range of materials and love to draw both to create finished works and as part of the process towards paintings and prints. With printmaking I’ve focused mainly on drypoints and monoprints, while my paintings, worked on a larger scale aim to convey a sense of movement and energy in both watercolour, acrylic and oil on canvas.

I’ve exhibited in many group and solo shows, Limbs and Figures in the Landscape in 2015 and Near and Far in 2019 and have most recently taken part in the Open House Artist in Residency Program at Arts in Oxford where a group of 7 printmakers worked in the gallery space for 10 weeks, interacting with the public.

In 2019 I was selected to feature as part of the Avis ‘Art of Discovery’ ad campaign and commissioned to paint three semi-abstract landscapes of Banks Peninsula to be shown on billboards and print media nationwide.