It wasn鈥檛 until Desir茅e Patterson had her camera stolen in Paris that she realized she wanted to be a photographer.
鈥淭hat was the first time in my life that I had been without one,鈥� the 91原创-born artist recalled.
鈥淚 realized how much it meant to me to capture the things that I saw and the things that I wanted to express. It was always just a hobby, I didn鈥檛 realize how important it was to me until then.鈥�
Paris was one of hundreds of stops on Patterson鈥檚 seven-year trek to 32 different countries. After graduating from 91原创 Secondary School, she travelled around the world to find her calling, just to realize it had been 鈥渦nder my nose鈥� (and shutter finger) the entire time.
While the French thief awakened Patterson鈥檚 love for taking photos, a second event gave her a reason to share them with the world.
Her friend鈥檚 uncle was a travelling stock photographer, and at one of his fundraisers for a village in Africa, Patterson realized, 鈥淚 want his job.鈥�
鈥淗e was showing his pictures of the 40 somewhat countries he has travelled to,鈥� she recalled.
鈥淚 just realized how much making images meant to me. I went there and I sat in a little chair and I said, 鈥榯his is what I want to do, I鈥檓 going to do this.鈥欌��
Patterson moved to Whistler and opened her own photography business, with a focus on landscapes and commercial work.
鈥淢y dream was to hang out of helicopters and photograph snowboarders,鈥� she said.
鈥淭he fine art was always just the hobby that I did for myself.鈥�
But a car accident changed all of that.
Suffering permanent damage to her shoulder, Patterson was no longer able to take her gear back-country.
Her focus shifted to art.
鈥淢y artistry has evolved so much in that time,鈥� Patterson reflected.
鈥淲hen I first started out, I was very much influenced by my strong exposure to travel, culture and geographic diversity.
鈥淎nd then living in a place that鈥檚 as scenic as Whistler put an emphasis on sustainability. Coming back to a city like that opened my eyes to a lot of the environmental issues that we face.鈥�
Today, the 33-year-old鈥檚 talent for photography has transformed into a remarkable business with an activist voice.
鈥淣ow I create more contemporary work specifically to encourage discussion and dialogue regarding sustainability and preservation,鈥� she said.
In her latest work, Patterson has shot local models in-studio and morphed their images with landscapes of New York City, clear-cut forests and oil refineries to create juxtapositions that will start a larger conversation.
鈥淚 really strive to do things that are original that I haven鈥檛 done before 鈥� that really means a lot to me,鈥� she said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 like to copy things, I like to have my own voice. What I鈥檓 trying to create is extremely complex and it鈥檚 really hard to find all of the elements that will go into it.鈥�
A large part of Patterson鈥檚 passion comes from her travels, where she鈥檚 witnessed some of the world鈥檚 most affluent, and the world鈥檚 most impoverished.
鈥淚鈥檝e been to a lot of third world countries and those impacted me in different ways,鈥� she said.
鈥淐ambodia inspired me in different ways than a place like Italy.
鈥淭he third world countries have shown me that there鈥檚 a lot of environmental issues going on over there because there isn鈥檛 even enough resources to take care of their people properly, so the environment really gets put on the back burner.
鈥淭hat definitely opened my eyes to appreciating what we have in B.C. and really looking to protect it and to inspire ways of preservation.鈥�
Completely self-taught in photography, Patterson is now learning metal sculptures at Emily Carr University to add a new level of dimension to her work.
鈥淚 am very much inspired by the conceptual background that contemporary art brings,鈥� she said.
鈥淚 think it engages audiences in a different way.鈥�
Although her 3D work is still in progress, conservationists and art enthusiasts alike have two opportunities to view Patterson鈥檚 photography in person this month.
She will be at Circle Craft Christmas Market at the Vancouver Convention Centre Nov. 11 until Nov. 15.
Patterson is also one of 400 artists featured at this year鈥檚 East Side Culture Crawl in Vancouver from Nov. 19-22.
Working out of the Vancouver Community Laboratory at 1907 Triumph St., she will be featuring a number of her conceptual pieces inside LED light boxes 鈥� another new element of her art.
鈥淚 never would have thought in my wildest dreams that I would make a career of it,鈥� she admitted.
鈥淎t the end of the day it鈥檚 pretty amazing to say you鈥檝e created a career out of your own creativity.鈥�
For tickets and more information on Circle Craft market, visit .
Route maps and information on the 19th annual East Side Culture Crawl is available at .
And to see more of Patterson鈥檚 photography, visit her website .
Images submitted by Desir茅e Patterson. Through her fine art photography, Patterson hopes to encourage dialogue on environmental sustainability and preservation. Top photo: this model has been shot in-studio in Vancouver, and is blended with an image of an oil refinery across the border in Washington. Bottom photo: This model has also been shot in-studio in Vancouver, and is morphed into a landscape of Manhattan Beach in California.
