Robert Bateman is Canada’s most recognized unrecognized painter. He is greatly criticized because he is a HIGH REALIST NATURTALIST painter and his works sell in editions of up to and over the hundreds of thousands. This criticism by the “REAL” art world is why his works HAVE YET to be found in any “recognized” national or provincial gallery.  I think they are missing the point though. His work sells into the hundreds of thousands because it clearly speaks to ALL CLASSES of people as it can be easily understood, the technical skill with which it is rendered is simply beyond belief and his images speak to its audience unlike any others. Unlike a pop sensation whose work is also easily consumed by the masses, a brief study into Mr. Bateman’s life shows that he is the real deal, AS his art is representative of his life, not some concoction created by a producer for the intent of MASS consumption. This is part of the reason we as art admires enjoy an artist’s work. The MYTHOLOGY behind the ARTISTS JOURNEY and this artist’s journey has been an incredible one. They have taken him to ALL FOUR CORNORS of the earth on quest of documenting, collecting and CONCERVING WILD LIFE and natural Habitats. The documentation of these journeys is so highly regarded that originals SELL for up to a million dollars, a feat that FEW ARTISTS accomplish in their life times. No, not every ones piece of cake, but obviously his. It is this dedication to his art and nature that has taken him to greater heights than ANY OTHER RECOGNIZED Canadian visual artist or naturalist painter. He has inspired millions to take up the ART of painting and people readily pay thousands of dollars for EDITIONS of his work. The only thing he has yet to accomplish in his life is the righteous recognition he has deserves from the contemporary art world.       

   To first come to an understanding of this artist’s work one must first come to an understanding of this MANS life. Bateman was born in 1930 and grew up on the outskirts of Toronto in a world vastly different from the one we now live. At the time urban sprawl had yet to take its full effect and most of the out lying areas were natural and wild. At this time vast areas of country side where still prevalent and stretch far beyond what the eye could see.  It was in this environment that he first developed his love for nature and all its precious creatures. Further influenced by his summer “residencies” in the Haliburton region of Ontario by the age of twelve Mr. Bateman and his friends where “obsessed” with the exploration and sketching of the natural area and all its “residences”, this continued through out his teenage years. Around this time he was also a member of the Junior Field Naturalist Club at the Royal Ontario Museum where he learned to identify and classify many varieties of birds and wildlife. Highly SKILLED TONAL pencil drawings of birds from the out lying area can be found dating back as far as 1947 at which time he would been 17 years old. His love for nature kept him working odd jobs collecting species, data, and information and sketching animals for various parks and MUSEUMS during summer months while schooling.
 

  While studying geography at the University of Toronto he continued to study drawing and painting part time under Carl Scaefer through the Nikolaides method. This is a method of figure drawing where one captures the gesture of the subject in a very minimal amount of time, often as quickly as under ten seconds. Upon finishing his formal education he began a career as teacher. Through out his life as young man he enjoyed extensive travels through Europe, North America, West Africa, and Malaysia. In which he and his travel companions continued to trap, taxidermy and research various wild life, study cultures and “suck the life out” of every experience they could find. Influences in work from this time can be seen from through out Art History. As reference from the Impressionists, The Group of Seven, Picasso and even the New York School of Painting can be seen and are cited during this period. He continued to experiment with various styles forms and forms of painting as he began a career as a high school teacher a position he held for twenty years. 


  The Robert Bateman who is now recognized emerged in his early thirties.  When a number of Realist Painters such as Canadian artists Christopher Pratt and Alex Coleville where gaining recognition. Inspired by this and a showing of Andrew Wyeth’s work Bateman felt compelled to express himself in his OWN Visual Language, that of high realist naturalist art. While teaching in Nigeria, he was offered the opportunity to display some of his works in a local gallery. This is where his work started to gain international recognition. Upon returning to Canada after a series of successful exhibitions from his latest studies of the Ontario countryside, it was found the artist could no longer keep up with the DEMAND for his work. Mill Pond Press suggested the reproduction of HIGH QUALITY EDITIONS (Coleville was also known for creating editions there by eliminating the need to mass produce originals works thus ensuring their artistic quality) . The rest as they say is HISTORY as Robert Bateman has continued to travel, classify and document his life’s Adventures. His skill in reflecting those adventures through classical elements of painting such as lighting, composition and the ability to bring out the raw emotions of his subjects has brought him success greater than most of us could imagine.

  AS far as Mr. Batemans legacy goes, its true IMPACT has yet to be seen. AS the NATURAL STATE of our EARTH is QUICKLY DISAPEARING through the DISTRUCTION of Natural Habitats from MASS CONSUMTION and URBAN SPRAWL. I am sure many species and places he has documented now no longer exist. AS these Species and places disappear his work becomes even more prevalent AS A DOCUMENTATION OF THE WORLD IN WHICH WE ONCE LIVED. As for his artistic legacy this article was written in hopes that it will help lead to the day where his work can be seen and revered as it should be. Beside the GREAT Canadian High Realist contemporaies of his time. At that point you will be able to look at a Coleville, a Pratt and Bateman in the same room and easily see the similarties they hold. There by proving why Robert Bateman should be concidered of Canada's most prolific painters of his time.