Freeman Patterson lives at Shamper’s Bluff, New Brunswick, near his childhood home. He attended multi-grade (one-room) schools in Grey’s Mills and Long Reach, and high school at Macdonald Consolidated School in Kingston. He graduated with a B.A. (Honours: Philosophy) from Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, in 1959. The subject of his honour’s thesis was “The Form Of The Good” in Plato’s Republic. In 1962 he received a Master of Divinity degree (M. Div.) from Union Theological Seminary at Columbia University, New York. His master’s thesis was “Still Photography As A Medium Of Religious Expression.” While in New York, Freeman studied photography and visual design privately with Dr. Helen Manzer.

From 1962 to 1965 Freeman was dean of religious studies at Alberta College, Edmonton, and began actively to work in photography.

He moved to Toronto in 1966 to work for one year at Berkeley Studio, the United Church of Canada still photography and film production house. During this time and until the late 1970’s, Freeman completed numerous assignments across Canada for the Still Photography Division of the National Film Board of Canada. He also developed a large roster of professional clients in the editorial and advertising fields. Freeman has always been a strong supporter of the amateur photography community, and is a life member and former president of The Toronto Guild for Colour Photography.

Freeman returned to New Brunswick in 1973 in order to pursue his personal artistic interests and to establish a workshop of photography and visual design. Since then he has taught several week-long classes every year and, commencing in 1984, in southern Africa as well, where he co-founded the Namaqualand Photographic Workshops. He has given numerous workshops in the United States, Israel, New Zealand and Australia.

About Freeman Patterson

Although Freeman does much of his photographic work at home, he travels widely to photograph and to teach.

Since 1973 he has frequently presented half-day and all-day seminars to large groups (50 to 4000 persons) in the visual arts, music, education, and ecology across Canada, the United States, and in several other countries. Since 1977 he has written and illustrated four instructional books on photography and visual design and has co-authored a fifth. Also, he has written and illustrated six large cloth-edition books, and co-authored and illustrated two more. His first as solo author was Namaqualand: Garden of the Gods in 1984, which was followed by Portraits of Earth in 1987. In 1996 he authored ShadowLight: A Photographer’s Life, a major retrospective book of text and photographs, followed by Odysseys: Meditations and Thoughts For A Life’s Journey in 1998 and The Garden in 2003. In 1996 he produced a CD-ROM entitled Creating Pictures: A Visual Design Workshop. Freeman has also written for various magazines, CBC radio, and been featured on CBC television’s Man Alive, Sunday Arts And Entertainment, and Adrienne Clarkson Presents.
From September 2013 to mid January 2014 the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, New Brunswick, mounted a large retrospective exhibition (115 prints) of Freeman’s work, curated by Tom Smart. This exhibition, Embracing Creation, was accompanied by major publication with the same title (125 prints, 12 essays by Freeman and a major essay on Freeman’s artistic career by the curator, Tom Smart).

From 1973 to 1989, Freeman was an elected trustee of New Brunswick School District #19.

He served for eight years as vice-president and director of Masterfile (a major stock photography agency), two years on the board of Aids Saint John, and since 1998 as a director of the Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation. For six years Freeman was a national trustee of the Nature Conservancy of Canada and in 1997 donated his property on Shamper’s Bluff to the conservancy for an ecological reserve and education area.

For more than fifty years, Freeman Patterson, renowned photographer, author, educator, and gardener, has inspired people around the world to see beauty more deeply through photography, visual design, nature, and creativity. Alongside his internationally recognized work, he cultivated what has become one of Canada’s largest private gardens devoted primarily to rhododendrons and azaleas, set within an 18-acre woodland landscape at Shampers Bluff, New Brunswick.

Recognizing the importance of preserving both the garden and the philosophy they embody, Freeman established the Freeman Patterson Centre in 2019. His vision was to ensure that the garden, educational programs, and values he has cultivated throughout his lifetime continue to inspire future generations.

Working in partnership with the Nature Conservancy, the Freeman Patterson Centre is preparing to assume stewardship of the garden, creating a permanent public place where people can experience the connections between beauty, creativity, learning, and nature.

Our Charitable Purposes

The Freeman Patterson Centre exists to:

• establish and maintain a public garden and woodland park at Shampers Bluff for the benefit of the community;

• advance education through classes, workshops, and learning opportunities in photography, visual design, horticulture, ecology, natural history, woodland management, and wellness.

These purposes guide every aspect of the Centre’s planning, stewardship, and future programming.

Our Values

Our work is inspired by values that have shaped Freeman Patterson’s life and work:

– Sense of community – sharing knowledge and collaborating with individuals and organizations

– Healing power of nature – taking time for nature to help us reflect on ourselves and our place in the world

– Enrichment of learning and finding your strengths

– Constantly pursuing beauty in our environment

Building the Centre

The Freeman Patterson Centre is currently in its start-up phase. Transforming a remarkable private garden into a sustainable public charitable organization requires careful planning, strong partnerships, and long-term financial stability.

Current priorities include:

• documenting and understanding the garden’s physical, horticultural, and intellectual assets;

• raising endowment and operating funds to ensure the gardens can be maintained in perpetuity;

• developing educational programs that build upon the beauty and uniqueness of the gardens;

• establishing the governance, staff, volunteer, and operational structures needed for long-term sustainability;

• working with the Nature Conservancy of Canada to prepare for the transition of stewardship; and

• keeping our community involved and informed as the Centre grows and evolves.

Our Journey

2019 – The Freeman Patterson Centre is incorporated as a non-profit in the province of New Brunswick.

2024 – A Memorandum of Understanding is established with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, outlining the future transition of stewardship.

2025–2028 – The Centre focuses on fundraising, governance, volunteer development, educational planning, and organizational growth.

2029 (planned) – Stewardship of the garden transitions to the Freeman Patterson Centre, with expanded public access and educational programming.

Current and Future – The Centre will continue to preserve the gardens while offering inspiring learning opportunities that celebrate photography, horticulture, creativity, nature, and well-being for generations to come.

We invite you to support Freeman’s vision to help ensure the gardens flourish and programs continue to inspire creativity, self-discovery, and renewal for generations to come. Make a donation today.

To make a donation, please email hello@freemanpattersoncentre.com for more information.

Your generosity nurtures the sustainable, long-term growth of the Freeman Patterson Centre gardens and programs.