Mirroring Life: Te Anau artist Gordon Kane with one of his paintings.

By Bruce Fraser

Artist are a reflection of their society, says prolific Fiordland artist Gordon Kane.

  Speaking in his distinctive studio on Lakefront Dr, Kane said one of his themes was to inspire others to combat red tape and excessive government administration.

  He painted one of his major works, Red Tape Guilt, as an expression of his own frustration with the beauracratic obstruction that says he blocked his own progress.

  Red Tape Guilt was subsequently made into a T-shirt, captioned "aim higher", which he sells from his Te Anau gallery.

  His second artistic goal is to document the history and methods of Fiordlands Helicopter pilots and deer capture pioneers. Kane, a pilot and deer capture pilot himself through the 1970's and 80s, depicts the progressive development of the methods used to recover live deer from the forests and mountains of Fiordland.

  The capture teams provided breeding stocks for the fledging deer farming industry.

  The knack of helicopter-borne hunting and live deer capture developed asa a direct result of New Zealander's courage and inventiveness, he explained.

  His paintings hon our the work of the many pilots and crewmen killed during the hectic early years of the industry.

  "This was a unique culture and way of life. It is a period of history that has caught international interest, Kane said.

  His 15 years as a hunter and pilot gave him unlimited access to the co lour and light effects of the Fiord land wilderness. "These are the visions I now show in my paintings," he said.

  After several years battling the debilitating neurological disorder Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Kane is now fully recovered, has re obtained his helicopter pilots licence and intends to recommence his flying career.