Board Member

Land Steward

Resident Historian

The Heart of the Land

Barbara Matusik

Some people study the land. Barbara has lived it, preserved it, painted it, and taught it for over five decades.

A PhD candidate in Historic Preservation — Design, Construction, and Planning at the University of Florida. A Master of Arts in Museology and Museum Studies. A Bachelor of Fine and Studio Arts. A background in Graphic Design, Native American Culture, and a career spanning from Chicago to Gainesville that has always found its way back to the natural world.

Barbara is not a guest at Rebel Ranch. She is the land. She has stewarded these 7.5 acres of North Florida nature preserve and brought her lifetime of knowledge — as a wildlife artist, as a historian, as a naturalist — to everything that grows here.

When you walk these trails with Barbara, you are not on a tour. You are in a living classroom led by someone who has spent decades learning how to see what most people walk right past.

Naturalist Walk

A guided walk through the property with Barbara. The plants, the history, the land. What it was. What it is. What it is becoming. Maximum 8 guests.

Book Through Reconnect

Wildlife Art Session

Learn to observe and illustrate the natural world the way Barbara has for decades. Nature journaling, wildlife sketching, seeing with an artist's eye. All levels welcome.

Book Through Reconnect

Land & History Talk

The story of this land — its history, its preservation, its significance. Barbara has studied historic preservation at the doctoral level. This is not a casual conversation. It is a real education.

Book Through Reconnect

Creation Station — Art

Barbara is a founding contributor to Creation Station. Her artistic background — wildlife illustration, graphic design, fine arts — brings a depth to the creative programs that most places simply cannot offer.

Learn About Creation Station