Print Norfolk: Morning Lino Block Workshop at Arenui on Norfolk Island

On Norfolk Island, a three-hour morning lino block printing workshop at Arenui offers a quiet, creative way to read the island’s shapes and colors. Held at Arenui - 143 Collins Head Road Norfolk Island, the class is led by local artist and teacher Caryn Evans and timed to finish before midday, when sea breezes pick up.

Inside a light-filled studio that opens onto a small garden, the workshop focuses on carving, inking, and printing relief blocks from linoleum. Beginners are welcomed: Caryn walks students through image transfer, safe use of carving tools, inking techniques, and pulling a small edition of handprinted works. Bring a photograph, sketch, or island motif; students typically leave with several prints and a carved block ready for more work at home. Morning tea is included, and the group size is capped at six, which keeps instruction personal.

The setting separates this class from an ordinary art school. Norfolk Island’s compact landscape — windswept cliffs of old volcanic rock, stands of tall Norfolk Island pines, and cottage gardens spilling with hibiscus and native flax — feeds the visual vocabulary on the table. You’ll hear island birds in the hedgerow while choosing shapes to cut: look for the bright flash of the endangered Norfolk Island green parrot or the smaller silvereye in the hedges. The studio’s garden is an optional spill-out workspace when light and weather invite outdoor printing.

Practical details are tidy: sessions are three hours long and aimed at participants aged 16 and over; the maximum group size is six and the space offers level access with no stairs. Workshops run Wednesday mornings at 10 a.m., making this an easy cultural stop between coastal walks, historic Kingston, and boutique cafes in Burnt Pine. For visitors interested in local heritage, Norfolk Island was an early colonial settlement in 1788 with a layered history visible in its buildings and community traditions.

Whether you’re a visitor wanting a tactile memento framed in island memory or a maker chasing a new technique, this workshop pairs craft skill with a direct encounter with place. The small group size, expert guidance from Caryn Evans, and the studio’s relationship to the island’s plants and seascapes make this more than an art class — it’s a portable fragment of Norfolk Island you can press into paper and take home. Because groups are limited to six, Caryn tailors demonstrations to each student’s level, offering one-on-one corrections and compositional guidance. The workshop also introduces basic materials care so your block and prints travel home safely. Whether you keep your prints, frame them, or gift them, the work carries the island’s character—coastal lines, native leaves, and the particular light that defines Norfolk Island mornings. Advance booking is recommended.