Richard Wallwork first visited the Kaikoura region in 1914. A popular sketching area for Canterbury artists, particularly in the early 1900s, Wallwork and his artist wife, Elizabeth, travelled there regularly. Wallwork’s academic training encouraged skills in drawing. These were readily adapted to printmaking in which he had a strong interest from early in his career. Wallwork became a major figure in encouraging printmaking in Canterbury. Born in Manchester, Wallwork studied etching at the Royal College of Art, in London, under Sir Frank Short (1857-1945). In 1910 Wallwork was appointed to the staff of the Liverpool School of Art and married Elizabeth Donaldson. They immigrated to New Zealand in 1911 when Wallwork was appointed to the staff of the Canterbury College School of Art. He became Director in 1928. He was a member of the Canterbury Society of Arts, becoming its president in 1927. Wallwork also exhibited with the Australian Painters and Etchers’ Society in Sydney and Melbourne.