Capturing Mountains - The Life and Art of Austen Deans

At age twelve Austen Deans knew he wanted to spend his life exploring the high country and mountain ranges of Canterbury. He became an en plein air artist and has made his living for nearly seventy-five years capturing images of those mountains and landscapes in watercolours and oils.

This book describes Austen's life as a painter and mountaineer, and his place in New Zealand's history as a direct descendant of the Canterbury pioneers John and Jane Deans.

Austen enlisted in 1939 and in 1941 was captured on Crete. As a P.O.W. he experimented with Modernist techniques and managed to send a number of these works home. On his return to New Zealand he made his name as a skilled representational painter. He won the Kelliher Art Prize twice and was placed second twice. In 1995 he was awarded an OBE for his services to art. 

While he has always been a devoted family man, mountain climbing remained his greatest enthusiasm.

It was his love of the mountains that inspired many of his greatest paintings.

Format: Softback - Excellent condition

Publisher: Wily Publications

Published: 2011

ISBN: 9780958292382