Woodville's Joan and Kevin McIntyre will be special guests at a major exhibition of Gottfried Lindauer's paintings at the West Bohemian Gallery in Pilsen in the Czech Republic, during the European capital of culture celebrations. The McIntyres have dedicated their life to researching the life and artwork of Lindauer who lived in Woodville.
Woodville's Joan and Kevin McIntyre will be special guests at a major exhibition of Gottfried Lindauer's paintings at the West Bohemian Gallery in Pilsen in the Czech Republic, during the European capital of culture celebrations. The McIntyres have dedicated their life to researching the life and artwork of Lindauer who lived in Woodville.
Woodville's Kevin McIntyre reckons he and wife Joan haven't had a real life since they began dedicating so much of their time to artist Gottfried Lindauer.
The Czech-born artist lived and painted in Woodville from 1890 when he purchased a ten-acre block in Pinfold Rd, until his death in 1926. He is buried at the historic Gorge Cemetery with his wife Rebecca and son Hector.
The McIntyres began their Lindauer journey during the town's centennial in 1975.
Tour guide Martin Sliva (left) from True Travel, with Kevin McIntyre of Woodville in the Lindauer Studio. The studio has become a mecca for tourists from around the world.
"We had 12 Lindauer originals on display at the Woodville Racecourse where the centennial was based and they created a lot of interest," Mr McIntyre said.
Mr McIntyre photographed those 12 original paintings, but admitted not much happened until Ray Allott pushed for a Lindauer replica studio to be built in the town.
The studio opened in 2001.
Rebe Mason, the granddaughter of Gottfried Lindauer, visiting Lindauer's grave in the historic Gorge Cemetery in Woodville on her last visit to the town in June, 2013. Gottfried (Bohumir) Lindauer was born on January 5, 1839, in Plzen (Pilsen). Rebe, the daughter of his son Victor Wilhelm, has since passed away.
"Joan was asked to frame some pictures from a book on Lindauer, but we knew we couldn't because of copyright issues, so we started chasing originals to copy for the studio," Mr McIntyre said.
"We obtained 20 copies of Lindauer's works from Auckland, but I knew and then heard of others so our holidays were spent driving around the country in pursuit of Lindauers.
"We met some very interesting people and there are now 70 Lindauer copies in Woodville's replica studio, but we have 90 we can use. Some are in storage and others are duplicates of those on display."
Mr McIntyre has photographed more than those 90 paintings, but hasn't been able to get the rights to display the rest in public.
"A big part of this has been keeping faith with the owners by not divulging where they're from," he said.
"These artworks are a bit of a liability for private owners. With a painting of great granddad hanging on the wall worth between $50,000 and $100,000, they can be difficult to insure.
"We know of a Lindauer painting purchased in the 1970s which is locked in a vault. Even the owners don't see it. We were able to photograph it and then it went back into the vault. But it's a shame it's not out for people to see."
For Mrs McIntyre, the attraction of the Lindauer studio in Woodville is the opportunity it gives for people to see a range of the artist's works.
"We have a lot of overseas visitors, from Germany, the United States, England and France and of course the Czech Republic who visit," she said. "They think it's awesome."
The McIntyres have been compiling a massive catalogue of the artist's work. They are taking it with them on their June tour of the Czech Republic and have also supplied a photo for the upmarket exhibition opening invitation.
Lindauer was one of the 19th century's most prolific painters of Maori portraits, but he also produced a large number of works of Europeans while living in Woodville.
"We've been in a rush to finish the catalogue so we can take it with us, but we're also asking those who hold the paintings for permission to publish it later as a book," Mrs McIntyre said.
A major retrospective exhibition opened this month at the Gallery of West Bohemia in Pilsen, in the Czech Republic - the birth place of Lindauer.
The exhibition is part of the 2015 European Capital of Culture celebrations and a collection of priceless Maori portraits from the Partridge collection at the Auckland Art Gallery left New Zealand for the first time in more than 100 years to be exhibited.
Hector Cornell Partridge was one of two sons Lindauer had with his second wife, Rebecca.
The Pilsen exhibition also includes 19 Lindauer works completed before he left for New Zealand in 1874 and Maori items sent back to the Nprstek Museum in Prague by Lindauer around 1900.
As the McIntyres have researched Lindauer for the catalogue, they've discovered some of the original information about his arrival in New Zealand wasn't correct.
"He was on board one of a fleet of ships which arrived off Wellington, but they were unable to disembark because of the weather and ultimately sailed into Auckland," Mrs McIntyre said.
The McIntyres' visit to Pilsen won't be all their Lindauer tour will include.
"We are travelling across country to Valasske Kiobouky where the church has Lindauer paintings," Mr McIntyre said. "They will be holding an all souls day and will parade the paintings through the streets and we have permission to photograph them."
The McIntyres have been following the stories of the Pilsen exhibition on Maori Television and are now eager to arrive in the Czech Republic with their own contribution and experience the exhibition for themselves.
