Born in Selkirk in the Scottish Borders and now based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Alfons Bytautas RSA studied at Edinburgh College of Art (1972-77) before going to Paris to study at Atelier 17, the studio of the esteemed Modernist printmaker Stanley William Hayter. Bytautas was Master Printmaker at Edinburgh Printmakers' Workshop from 1979 to 2009, where he was instrumental in developing and promoting innovative print techniques. Bytautas was elected an Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1994 and became a Royal Scottish Academician in 2005.