Portrait of Kate Sperrey
Gottfried Lindauer, Artist
This is one of the
paintings
in our collection.
It was made in late 19th century. The place where it was made is unknown.
See full details
Object Detail
About the Work
The
sitter
was
also
known
as
Eleanor
Catherine
Mair
(1862–1893).
Possibly
a
contemporary
of
Lindauer,
Kate
Sperrey,
an
acclaimed
New
Zealand
portrait
painter
of
her
time,
died
at
the
age
of
31
and
has
since
gone
largely
unrecognized.
Kate
studied
portraiture
in
Europe
between
1881
and
1884,
in
Rome
under
Giuseppe
Ferrari,
an
early
modern
portrait
painter.
She
also
studied
in
Paris
and
London.
In
a
biography
written
on
her
by
Jane
Vial
for
Te
Ara
-The
encyclopaedia
or
New
Zealand,
Vial
writes
"
By
1886
she
had
a
studio
in
Lambton
Quay.
She
appears
to
have
been
an
official
portraitist
for
several
years.
She
painted
many
prominent
political
figures,
including
George
Grey,
Harry
Atkinson
and
John
Ballance.
She
also
painted
many
portraits
of
Māori,
her
subjects
including
Wairingiringi
of
Ngati
Mahuta
and
her
husband,
Te
Wahanui
of
Ngati
Maniapoto.
From
1885
to
1887
Sperrey
belonged
to
the
Auckland-based
New
Zealand
Art
Students'
Association,
whose
purpose
was
to
encourage
the
painting
of
uniquely
New
Zealand
subjects.
Her
Māori
portraits,
especially
those
of
women
and
children
from
Rotorua
and
the
King
Country,
were
highly
praised.
Critics
admired
her
skill
at
life
drawing,
her
fresh
and
bold
modern
painting
technique,
and
her
ability
to
capture
the
colour
of
Māori
skin.
A
number
of
her
paintings
were
reputedly
destroyed
in
a
fire,
which
would
help
to
account
for
their
scarcity
today."
Accessed
3/12/12
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2s36/1
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2s36/1
This record has related works.
Measurements
Image 480 x 410mm
Frame 750 x 670 x 60mm
Frame 750 x 670 x 60mm
Media
oil on canvas on board
Description
Profile portrait of a woman with her hair up in a french knot and wearing a lace-trimmed collar with gold detail.
Credit Line
Collection of the Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua. Gift of Mr & Mrs Hume, 1982.
Collection Type
Permanent collection
Acquisition Date
22 Jun 1982