Laurie is a self-taught artist from Scotland, who moved from industry to art in the 1970s. He began his own career with sketching which became etching, and then progressed to creating etchings in limited editions.  During the 1970s and 80s his primary markets were Liberty's and the Medici Gallery in London, selected Cornish pieces selected for sale at Buckingham Palace.

He and his wife Mona opened a small studio gallery on the square in Newlyn in the early 1990's, where he continued to show his own work and also to exhibit work for others. He has consistently shown work of high quality, primarily of the human figure and of scenic landscape views of Cornwall, in mixed shows in West Cornwall, following a major solo show in Penzance in 1989.