From as far back as Matt Patterson can remember, he has loved both nature and art. In his free time, he was always either out fishing, searching for turtles and snakes, or painting. His father was a biology teacher, and their home hosted a large menagerie of animals.

Patterson’s journey as an artist has taken him far beyond the comfort of his New Hampshire studio. His travels and research have taken him from Madagascar’s Spiny Forest, where he surveyed critically endangered radiated tortoises, to swamps of the Belizean rainforest, where he waded waist-deep to catch and tag turtles for critical population studies. There is almost no distance he will not go, almost nothing he will not do, to learn all he can about his subjects. Being in the field is an important part of his process — to observe species in their native habitats.

He created the painting Roseate Spoonbill after a trip to Florida a few years ago with his wife. They saw a spoonbill in the wild, and after seeing this bird with its long, graceful neck, colorful bald head, spoon-shaped bill, and beautiful feathers adorned in pink, he was inspired to paint one.

For Patterson, it is not enough to merely document these marvelous species; It is even more important to actively contribute to saving them from extinction. As a member of Artists for Conservation and a Fellow of The Explorers Club, he uses his work to raise awareness and inspire action for conservation.