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With more than two decades of experience teaching children art in Canada, nature artist Robert Bateman said he could tell which students possess an innate talent after only a short period of time.

"I think it is, I hate to say ... a gift. That sounds presumptuous, (but) I think people are born with it," he said. "In my case, I kind of grew up an artist, and Wayne Gretzky grew up a hockey player, and Tiger Woods grew up a golfer. ... You can't say how did it happen; that's just who they are."

Bateman, who is recognized by critics as one of the world's premiere contemporary nature artists, is scheduled to be on hand for a signing from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Southeast Artworks in the Nugget Mall, with a lecture beginning at 6:30. The event is free and open to the public.

Bateman has been on a several-week tour around western Canada and has scheduled stops in Anchorage as well as Juneau. He says Alaska's natural splendor holds a special place in his heart.

"Southeast Alaska is spectacular," he said, adding that it shares similarities with areas near his home on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia.

"I think Denali is one of the most spectacular places on the planet," he said. "When people ask me 'your favorite,' I rate Africa as number one, especially east Africa. And Antarctica, believe it or not, would be number two. And then Alaska would be number three."

Bateman said he continues to be inspired by the beauty of Alaska's wildlife. He said he has fond memories of Southeast Alaska, citing a salmon and halibut fishing trip from Juneau to Sitka and a float down the Taku River from Canada to Juneau among them.

While always being inspired by nature art, Bateman said he moved through different artistic styles before he arrived at the style he has been recognized for around the globe for decades. His paintings hang in museums, private collections and palaces, including the commission of the official Canadian wedding gift for Prince Charles of Great Britain and an exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 that drew record-breaking crowds.

Bateman said there is a lot more nature that he would like to capture on canvas.

"In a sense they are limitless," he said. "I used to paint more abstract paintings. In abstract art you can just do anything you want, and I like to have some kind of constraint. And I was always sort of searching for ideas. But now when I'm using nature I can do anything, and I'm definitely not hampered by what I've done before. I don't paint by formula, so I might do a moose or I might do a mouse or a Native canoe or a frog."

Bateman said his subjects are generally North American, European and African.

"And generally speaking, my favorite critters would be predators - hawks and owls and eagles, as well as the big cats and wolves and bears and things," he said. "It's probably a guy thing."

There are certain animals he has painted repeatedly and other creatures he has neglected, he said.

"For example, I'm a bit embarrassed to say that I've neglected the Canadian symbol and I've done lots of the American symbol. The American symbol is, of course, the bald eagle. The Canadian symbol is the beaver, which artistically is kind of a boring brown blob. ... Of course, the bald eagle has so much charisma."

Bateman said he attempts to paint on a daily basis. He said he devotes all day every day, when uninterrupted.

"I paint what I paint for myself, to celebrate nature and because I can't stop doing it," he said with a laugh.

Bateman works with acrylic paint and uses photography for reference. He said he uses five to 50 photographs and alters them to suit his idea and composition for each piece, adding that one photo is never enough to give the right amount of perspective.

"I consider the thought of the idea behind the piece of art is the most important thing," he said. "Quite a bit of art, including wildlife art, doesn't seem to have any particular idea. The person may be skilled, but there isn't much thought or idea in the composition and things of that sort, and that's what I struggle with. And that comes from intuition - it just comes out of nowhere."

When asked what he hopes people will take away from his art, he said he would like for more people, particularly young people, to find a reason to celebrate nature and to "get out there in nature and fall in love with it and therefore protect it."

He said in the last five or 10 years he has grown particularly concerned with people's attention being captured by electronics and their apathy toward nature. Bateman said he believes that has a direct correlation to the myriad of problems people deal with today, including obesity, attention deficit disorder, depression, suicide and substance abuse.

"Let's get out there in nature ... it's precious, and let's protect it," he said.

• Contact reporter Eric Morrison at 523-2269 or eric.morrison@juneauempire.com.