Matthew Russ was born in Portland, Maine and raised in nearby Cape Elizabeth. He earned a B.A. from Colby College, majoring in studio art with a concentration in oil painting and studying for one year at Crawford College of Art in Cork, Ireland. He lives with his wife KC in Waterville, where he maintains a studio and works as a preparator for both Waterville Creates and the Colby College Museum of Art. Russ celebrates Maine’s landscape in his paintings. He paints from life, working outdoors and often backpacking into remote locations. He favors protected lands, such as state and national parks, Audubon sanctuaries, and islands along the Maine Island Trail. Drawn to long-distance views, he says, “Distance has a mysterious power, turning the mundane into the mystical. As I paint and strive to make sense of a distant ridgeline or far-off island, there’s a yearning I feel, a wish to know the unknowable. I intend that viewers of my work share in this experience of reaching, of casting their own eyes and imaginations as far as they can.” Russ’ work can be found in private collections nationwide, and in such institutions as Maine General Hospital, Verrill Dana, LLP, and the Colby College Environmental Studies Department. He has also donated paintings to non-profit organizations, including Maine Audubon Society, Maine Island Trail Association, and LifeFlight of Maine. His painting Indian Bar #3 is featured in the book Art of Penobscot Bay by Carl Little and David Little.