Selected Artist — Open Call 2026
About
Chris Chandler works in modes of deconstruction and reconstruction with modular type and letterpress printmaking. Primarily utilizing the Alpha-Blox and Future Schmuck fonts — enlarged into large custom woodblocks for use on his Vandercook 232P proofing press — Chandler transposes letters, words, and shapes into abstracted assemblies of wheat-pasted prints. His practice of rearranging, layering and tearing his prints reflects his appeal to the analog and endless combinations possible through printmaking processes.
Chris's printworks communicate an admiration for the Bauhaus and Constructivist movements with nods to the origins of graphic design and typography. Often large in scale, the works display qualities of immersion, movement and sound, harkening back to his 30-year career of tour management and sound engineering.
Selected works
Frequency and Distortion
Machine Theory
Machine Theory 2
Cubes
Modular Cubes
Fade-Out
VRV 2
Q & A
Walk us through your process — where does a piece begin, and how do you know it's finished?
My work begins on the printing press with letters, words, phrases, and numbers. These familiar forms are then deconstructed into their most basic modular elements — triangles, circles, lines, and other geometric shapes. As the letters dissolve, so too do the words and phrases, guiding the work into the liminal space between signal and noise. The result becomes abstract forms that remind viewers of the written language, while celebrating the beauty of graphic design and printmaking.
Is there something outside of art — a system, structure, or phenomenon — that quietly shapes how you think about form?
Working in the music industry for over 30 years has influenced my artistic practice. I draw on the language and techniques of sound — mimicking musical fade-outs in print and treating forms with effects reminiscent of distortion and delay. Years spent touring and working on large-scale set design have also shaped my approach to scale. They encouraged me to create immersive, large-scale installations that transform and take over a space, inviting viewers to experience the work as an environment rather than simply an object.
