KEY POINTS:
Police are hunting a man who is impersonating well-known West Auckland artist Dean Buchanan and selling copies of his stolen paintings which are worth up to $10,000 each.
The man is alleged to have made off with up to 22 of Buchanan's paintings after a deal between the pair went sour.
Most of the stolen artworks, colourful expressionist landscapes worth between $1000 and $10,000 each, are from Buchanan's 2006 collection but several were painted in the 1980s.
Henderson police Constable Renee Leth said the man was believed to be making his way around the country, selling some of the original paintings and making prints of others which he then sells after initialling them with a fake DB signature.
He was known to have sold some of the works at markets and tried to sell some to South Island galleries. He was also known to sell from the back of his "beaten up" truck.
Ms Leth said police had heard from some people who had bought the art believing they had met the real artist but subsequent inquiries had revealed it was the impersonator.
Buchanan told the Herald the man was an agent who used to sell his paintings for him.
However, after hearing some negative feedback from customers, Buchanan decided to stop selling through him.
When the artists asked for his works back Buchanan says the agent did not respond well.
Buchanan said he wanted to make it clear to his customers that he only sells from galleries and that his work is signed with his full signature, not initials.
"The real Dean Buchanan doesn't sell his paintings out of a truck and I don't knock on people's doors," said Buchanan.
Karekare-based Buchanan has been holding exhibitions since the late 1970s, most of which have been shown in different parts of New Zealand. But his work has also been shown in the United States, Australia, Belgium and Japan.
The Fine Prints website describes Buchanan as being famous for his expressionist treatment of the New Zealand landscape.
"He paints directly on to raw hessian, Buchanan's vibrant palette is inspired by the lush, subtropical surroundings of the Waitakere Ranges," it says.
"Based in Karekare, Dean has a profound love for native New Zealand that he expresses in complex, kaleidoscopic vistas echoing the works of expressionist masters from Franz Marc to Philip Clairmont."
Anyone with information about the scam, including the registration of the vehicle the man is driving, is asked to contact Henderson Criminal Investigation Unit on 839 0728.
