Jo Lankester

I’m standing in front of my first public artwork, recently installed at the entrance to the TGH Cancer Ward. A huge thank you to @onespace.com.au and the incredible TGH staff and volunteers who raised funds to make this possible. This piece was created to bring comfort and joy to those waiting for treatment. #TGH #TownsvilleArtist #DigiMen

New work for an exhibition at RMoA in 2026. Book art and 2D works inspired by my region's native flora and forna. #wip #townsvilleartist #artistbook #handstich #collage #intaglio #relief #woodcut

#wip #townsvilleartist #contemporaryprintmaking #onespace #lichen #blackcockatoo #rmoa

#Mokulito #wip #woodlithography #townsvilleartist #grevillea

Visiting the Fremantle Arts Centre to be part of the launch event for the 47th Fremantle Print Award has been a great experience. I've met some wonderful new friends and caught up with some beautiful friends, colleagues, and peers. Thank you to all the staff at the Fremantle Arts Centre, the judges, and peers for a fantastic exhibition. Congratulations to all involved and a special mention for @pritatinayeganeh for taking out the main prize. Well done! A shout out @onespace_au for their ongoing support and belief in me and my arts practice x #contemporaryprintmaking #47thfremantleprintaward #townsvilleartist #chatter #multiplatecolourprint #blackcocktoo

'Chatter' hanging in the 47th Walyalup Fremantle Arts Centre Print Award. Congratulations to all the artists, including my new friend Prita, a fellow Onespace artist, for taking out the main acquisitive prize. I'm so glad to have made the trip to Freo. #Onespace #fremantleartcentre #fremantleartaward #chatter #townsvilleartist

I'm proud and happy to announce that I am a finalist in the 47th Walyalup Fremantle Art Centre Print Award. The artwork, titled Chatter, explores the significance of community, place, memory, and interconnectedness, symbolised through the presence of the Black Cockatoo, often seen amongst the beach almond trees of Townsville and Magnetic Island. Our conversations shape the memories that bind us, just as these trees adapt and flourish in their coastal environment, demonstrating resilience and adaptability. The vibrant life represented by the Black Cockatoo inspires dialogue about our connections to nature and one another. Chatter highlights that our shared experiences and relationships are woven into the fabric of our community and are essential in shaping our sense of place and belonging. Jo Lankester Chatter, 2025 Unique state multi-plate colour intaglio, planographic, collage, polyptych Image size: 200 x 225cm Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace

The artwork's title, "Departures," plays on words, referring both to the black cockatoo's departure after the beach almond has fruited and the rains have started, and to my own shift towards a more observational approach rather than an interpretive one. Printmaking is well known for its ability to create multiples. I am using this aspect to develop a narrative through a series of prints, each with a repeated image in a unique state. While making an edition is repetitive, I am more interested in the uniqueness that can emerge from the matrix in each printed version. I've employed various printing techniques and processes to create this work. It's an exploration of what I have learned and become curious about since my introduction to printmaking in the mid-1980s. I enjoy working with colour and texture and strive to create pieces that evoke joy and curiosity. Jo Lankester Departures, 2025 Unique state multi-colour plate intaglio, planographic, collage and hand-stitching, image size: 98.5 x 80cm, frame size: 111 x 94cm Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace. #blackcockatoo #handprintedcollage #mokulito #handstitching #planographic #drypoint #intaglio #collagraph #townsvilleartist #onespace

'Terminalia Catappa—Beach Almond' introduces the mokulito process, which I use in conjunction with various techniques for mark-making and building the image. This process effectively complements my image-making approach. The wood litho plate allows for a limited edition of 3, facilitating a quick turnaround and the rapid layering of various elements. In this work, I was interested in minimising the 'noise' of layers, striving for a more straightforward approach to the finished print. I like to work large and quickly, and can get caught up in the details of mark-making for finishing a print. The single branch stretching across the paper is how I recall my observations of the beach almond tree on my walk. Selective memory process. Topographia: harmonies of place 11 April - 10 May 2025 @onespace_au Jo Lankester Terminalia Catappa- Beach Almond, 2025 Unique state Mokulito, woodblock and hand-stitching, triptych, image size: 120 x 240cm, frame size: 134 x 253cm @onespace_au Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace Framing by @burl.by.design #toporagraphiaharmoniesinplace #townsvilleartist #beachalmond #mokulito #handstitching #onespaceapril2025

The Anthraquinone Lichen editions II/III were printed and published at the Australian Print Workshop in 2024. After completing the initial production, I wanted to explore overlaying a drypoint etching of a life-sized Black Cockatoo onto the image. I aimed to combine avians and lichens without using Chine Collé or collage techniques, instead using drypoint etching. Hand stitching adds a tactile quality to the artwork, representing processes and offering a feminine perspective on storytelling within the landscape. @onespace_au 11 April - 10 May 2025 /artists/jo-lankester Jo Lankester Anthraquinone Lichen II/III, 2025 Unique state multi-colour plate lithography, ink, drypoint and hand-stitching, diptych, image size: 76.5 x 111cm, frame size: 89 x 125cm Drawn on the plate by the artist and printed in three colours from three lithographic plates by APW Printers at Australian Print Workshop, Melbourne, 2024. Additional printing for the unique state by the artist and hand stitching, 2025. Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace #APW #Lithography #drypointetching #handstitching #blackcockatoo #lichen #australianbirds #burlbydesign

The Red-tailed Black Cockatoo is a magnificent native bird in selected areas of Australia, including Townsville, North Queensland. Since starting this body of work, I have enjoyed observing the Black Cockatoo frequently in my immediate environment. I've seen them daily for roughly six months of the year, ravishing beach almonds along the strand and the walking paths of Jezzine Barracks. I can hear the juveniles screeching as they feast on the almonds and watch them flocking along the power lines at the end of the day. However, once the monsoon hit Townsville later than usual in 2025, bringing significant floods that transformed our landscape, most of the Black Cockatoos moved away from the Strand. Tropographia: harmonies of place @onespace_au 11 April - 10 May 2025 Jo Lankester Black Cockatoo, 2025 Unique state multi-colour plate intaglio, and hand-stitching, image size: 68 x 47cm, frame size: 81 x 63cm Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace. #blackcockatoo #townsville #brisbane #onespace #handstitching #drypoint #collagraph #lichen #contemporaryprintmaking #reliefprint #onespaceapril2025 #burlbydesign

The sulphur-crested cockatoo, a typical representative of the White Cockatoo, is easily identifiable by its bright yellow crest and white plumage. It is a common bird of Townsville, thriving in the urban bushland and surrounding dry tropical forest environments. White Cockatoo: Vibrant lichen adds a rich texture that complements the sulphur-crested cockatoo's natural tone-line work. The flora and fauna juxtaposition symbolises the symbiotic ecosystem of wildlife and plant life. The hand stitching highlighting the bird's bright yellow crest intends to draw the viewer through the composition. Hand stitching brings a tactile quality to the artwork, representing processes and a feminine perspective of storytelling of the landscape. Topographia: harmonies of place 11 April - 10 May 2025 Jo Lankester White Cockatoo, 2025 Unique state multi-colour plate intaglio, chine colle and hand-stitching, image size: 70 x 52cm frame size: 92 x 65cm Image: Louis Lim. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace. #whitecockatoo #multicolourplateprint #intaglio #collagraph #handstitching #hempcord #thread #townsvilleartist #onespace #brisbanecity