Author Description

John Olsen has been making prints since he first visited Stanley Hayter's famous Atelier 17, in Paris, in 1957. Ken McGregor's research has identified more than 400 editions of prints produced by Olsen between then and now. Best known and much loved are his etchings of frogs, birds and plants, and animals observed in Australian outback locations such as Lake Hindmarsh, Lake Eyre, Coopers Creek and Kakadu. He has also used the print medium to portray artist colleagues, his beloved Sydney Harbour Bridge and his passion for cooking-particularly paella! The print medium and the prints, editioned by most of Australia's master printers-including Max Miller, Fred Genis, Tate Adams, George Baldessin, John Robinson and others-have allowed the artist opportunities to express his ideas and impressions in line on the printmaker's plate with that same delightful immediacy he otherwise captures in his paintings. This book is a complete catalogue raisonne of Olsen's prints and includes a reproduction from each edition. It is an invaluable reference resource for researches, collections and everyone interested in Olsen's work in his medium.