Chris Lau Manson is an independent artist and writer based in Glasgow, Scotland.
Born in Hong Kong to a mixed Scottish-Chinese family before moving to Glasgow, Chris displayed a keen interest in visual storytelling from a young age. He learned to read from copies of Oor Wullie and The Broons sent to him while he lived in Hong Kong, and continued to grow his love of comics through reading Franco-Belgian comics Astérix and Tintin, and the science-fiction Manga of Masamune Shirow. He began to write and illustrate stories of his own, often drawing from speculative fiction, Scottish fairytales, and Chinese folk stories as sources of influence.
Chris’ professional illustration career was kickstarted in 2015 by working with The Ferret, Scotland’s leading independent investigative journalism platform, to provide artwork for the award-winning series of articles “Domestic violence: Home Office must act to save lives“. From there, Chris has gone on to work with many more clients for editorial illustration, often with socially-conscious goals. His extensive work with the Cardiff University School of Journalism, Media, and Culture resulted in his nomination for the Arts Foundation Futures Award for Place Writing in 2023.
In 2021, Chris made his exhibition debut with Red Threads of Fate, part of the Repository of the Undercommons collective response to the COP26 conference in Glasgow. The installation piece, hosted at Komplex Gallery in Pollokshields, explored the complexities of telling meaningful stories about climate change. Through experimental non-linear visual storytelling, Chris demonstrated how actions on one side of the globe linked together to have impacts across the world, feeding into loops and chains with consequences that are not immediately obvious to people living in the global north.
In 2022, Chris had his first professionally published comic released as part of Quindrie Press’ award-nominated collection “Tilt“. “F-! Providence!” is a punky anti wealth-hoarding story about how capital extends power through the manipulation of greed, and protects itself by denying the very human impact of its own actions – ultimately exploring what happens when that bubble is punctured, and the money flows back into society. The comic remains popular at conventions to this day, a story that resonates even more strongly in the current economic climate.
In 2023, Chris was part of a collective of Glasgow-based improv comedians who founded the theatre group “Naminaminow”. Together, they created a show titled “F(r)iction”, in which a team of comedians writes an entire novel from start to finish on stage with prompts from the audience. The show was taken to the Edinburgh Fringe in August of 2024, and to the Glasgow International Comedy Festival in March of 2025.
Chris continues to create comics and work with clients to create inspiring editorial illustrations that tell their stories with cultural sensitivity. He is also working on fine art pieces inspired by celtic rainforests, short stageplays for small casts, and a novel involving a magical-realism roadtrip.