Truly blessed |
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If the presence of aged ecclesiastical buildings were sufficient for registration as a historic site, Da Vella Gore’s Queenstown property would have been signed up long ago. She has collected and recycled five original South Island century-old churches to build her home and its surrounding buildings, which include an art gallery, a wedding chapel and an imposing accommodation lodge and function centre, all in a spectacular location high above Lake Hayes.
The story begins 30 years ago when Da Vella, an artist specialising in landscapes and floral subjects, stumbled across the demolition of St Mary’s Catholic church in Hokitika. Captivated by the beautiful stonework, kauri panelling, stained-glass windows and slate roof tiles, she collected the pieces on her tandem trailer and carted them back to Lake Hayes. Fifteen years later she had built her own home using materials from the church and another sourced in Winton, but not without a fair bit of criticism.
“Even my mother kept offering me a cheque to have the old churches taken to the dump. She said the place looked like a bomb site. But a house emerged from the chaos and the pain was forgotten. Friends have grudgingly conceded they love the end result.”
In the 1990s Da Vella was hospitalised for many months in a horrific car accident that also put her on crutches for three years. But her unshakeable faith and philosophy of “down but not out” kept her going. With materials saved from another church, this time in Greymouth, she set about building her dream art gallery from her latest acquisition of Gothic materials.
“This was my rehabilitation therapy. Once it was complete I hung my artwork in the gallery but, with all the church artefacts I was collecting, I was unconsciously creating a chapel. Soon people were asking to get married there and my paintings were moved back to the house permanently to make way for the gallery’s new role as a chapel.”
Da Vella trained as a marriage celebrant and her son Wayne and his wife Suzanne joined her on the property, where they began building the Stoneridge Estate lodge and function centre from yet another church – this one from Dunedin.
A key ingredient in the success of the venture has been Da Vella’s garden, created from a rabbit-infested paddock and now transformed into a tranquil cottage garden where irises and roses grow in abundance. She admits to having no plan and knowing little about gardening when she started.
“You couldn’t really define me as a gardener and I’ve had a bit of a love-hate relationship with it. I loved it when I achieved results but not when rabbits, drought and frosts threatened the plants.”
But perseverance and access to pumped water from Lake Hayes has paid off and two hectares of beautiful, mature garden are now the backdrop for weddings and the focus for garden tours. “I’ve been fortunate with the terrain, which has lots of large rocks that enhance the ponds and waterfalls I’ve created. I’ve even built my own stone bridge, which has become a favourite place for wedding photographs.”
Da Vella has planted many varieties of bearded irises in a mix of spectacular colours and was invited to speak at the World Iris Society’s Conference when it was held in Dunedin in 2008. Last year she hosted members of the New Zealand branch of the society who “raved about the garden”.
Around 200 varieties of roses also thrive in the garden. Da Vella’s favourites are the deep purple-red ‘Blackberry Nip’ and two fragrant David Austin varieties: the peach-pink ‘Abraham Darby’ and the buttercup-yellow bloomer ‘Graham Thomas’, voted the World’s Favourite Rose in 2009.
Her flowers and the surrounding landscape are often the subject of Da Vella’s artwork and her art gallery has a room specifically for her flower paintings. “It’s wonderful to be able to go out to the garden and pick a flower and paint it. Being an artist, I also wanted the view from every window in the house to be a ‘painting’.”
Though Da Vella’s vision had been to develop an art centre and donate it to the community, she became convinced that joining forces with Wayne and Suzanne to establish a family business was the way to go, while also making room for her art. Da Vella has produced two art books – The Coromandel Collection and The Southern Scenic Collection. Her three comedy books – This Blessed House, This Blessed Life and This Blessed Journey – recount the pitfalls and successes of transforming bare, unappealing land into a flourishing venture.
But there is still more to do. “One idea is for a rhododendron drive, so the garden is just going to get better and better. Queenstown has a lot to offer visitors but I’m delighted to have provided a tranquil place for people who don’t want to go bungy jumping or jetboating. Here they can relax and just enjoy the garden.”
Story: JENNY McLEOD
Photographs: SUELLEN BOAG
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