The print industry has lost one of its legends with the sad passing last week of Peter Clark, president of the Print & Visual Communications Association (PVCA), after a heroic fight against pancreatic cancer.
His passing came days after Clark was inducted into the PVCA’s Industry Honour Roll in recognition and appreciation of his outstanding achievements and industry contributions over the past half century.
The presentation was made during the 39th National Print Awards which was held during PacPrint in Melbourne on Thursday June 30. Clark’s son, Richard, accepted the prestigious and rarely issued award on behalf of his father.
Clark, who hails from Tasmania, had an illustrious 59-year career in the print and visual communications sector. His journey began with a certificate in Fine Art from the Tasmania School of Art and included various roles across the industry before he built his own company, AIW Printing.
In addition to his entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen across his career and businesses, Clark also demonstrated his commitment to the sector and its future by contributing widely at an industry level over the years.
“Peter was not only a well-respected Board Director and President, but also a good friend and counsel,” PVCA acting president Walter Kuhn said.
“Always a loyal ear to bounce thoughts off and a passionate advocate for the industry. There are very few who have built, not only such an impressive career, but also has given back so generously over almost six decades, to the industry. He will be dearly missed by many.”
Clark’s industry contributions included stints as a director of the Printing Industries Association of Australia (Printing Industries which is now the PVCA), PrintEx 19 board member and chair and director of Graphic Innovators Australasia Pty Ltd.
More recently, Clark served for nearly three years as a director and trustee of Media Super, where he was a member of its Investment Committee. He also sat on the board of PacPrint 2022 for nearly two years in the lead up to this year’s event, and in January this year was elected PVCA president.
“Peter has been a tremendous support across the Board merger discussions and specifically over the past six months in his role as president. Coming into a merger arrangement can be challenging as we blend cultures, however Peter from day one made it clear he wanted a united and common focused board – he never wavered from this commitment and without Peter’s measured approach and calm steering of the helm, this merger would have taken a lot longer to occur,” The Real Media Collective chairman and IVE Group CEO Matt Aitken said.
“He has truly united two boards to a common path, which in turn unites one industry. The support he has provided Kellie and the team is a testament to his character and we are all grateful for his class and leadership, not only in recent times, but across his entire career and generosity to the industry. Vale Peter Clark.”
Clark recently credited the printing industry for providing some of his greatest opportunities, commenting it is for this, that giving back to the industry has been such a great honour.
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