Through this recent photograph by Abra taken on the outskirts of Alice Springs , come on a road trip back to its lost past . One of the wondrous attractions of Alice Springs used to be Panorama Guth, an art gallery run by Dutchman Henk Guth . It included a huge cyclorama of Central Australian scenery consisting of 33 painted canvas panels each six metres high , viewed from a raised platform , desert landscaping giving the impression of being in the Red Centre . It was inspired by Panorama Mesdag , a seascape view in Holland . Fire destroyed the Alice panorama in 2005 .
By Peter Simon
I met the late Henk at the gallery in the 1970s where he was mass producing paintings of Stanley Chasm two at a time for the tourist trade . That , he explained , with an air of sadness , was what the tourists wanted. Tourist buses regularly pulled up at the gallery and many departed with a Standley Chasm painting .
On coming to Australia , having studied art in the Netherlands, he found that in Melbourne Australians were more interested in paintings of their horses and dogs than modern art , so he gave them what they wanted .
On moving to Alice Springs , he put a lot of effort and time into establishing the gallery which became a must see tourist attraction , offering works by local Aboriginal and other artists . Artefacts and old photographs added to the interest. Prime Minister Gough Whitlam opened the panorama in 1975.
A recent find on Magnetic Island was a soiled copy of ALICE SPRINGS AS IT WAS , in 135 old photographs , compiled and presented by Henk Guth , covering the development of the town from the 1870s when it was known as Stuart to it becoming Alice Springs in 1932-33 and beyond .
Printed by Gunn and Taylor , Victoria , l985, it draws on three collections . Subjects of interest include Aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira ,with a 1966 Guth painting of him on black velvet ; a 1970 view of visitors to Art Studio Guth ; a circa 1912 shot of Ted Ryko ( mentioned previously in this blog ) , who rode a bicycle from Adelaide to Darwin ; the first aeroplane to land in the town in 1922 ; author Bill Harney , from Charters Towers , first chief ranger at Ayers Rock ; camels, donkey teams, the first road train ; the Squash Shop operated by "Harry" Fan Kim Sing ; Australian Inland Mission activities , including pedal wireless sets ;early railway scenes; the first car to cross from Adelaide to Darwin ; mounted police and trackers ; Harold Lasseter of Lasseter's Lost Reef and Last Ride fame .
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Author Xavier Herbert at Lasseter grave , Alice cemetery. Little Darwin Photograph
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