Matt Ottley (24/08/1962) born in Goroka, Papua New Guinea; immigrated to Australia, 1974. Education: Julian Ashton School of Fine Arts (Sydney, New South Wales, Australia), diploma in fine arts, 1982; University of Wollongong, B.A. (music composition), 1986. Hobbies and other interests: Horseback riding, bushwalking, studying and rescuing wildlife. He is a self-employed artist, writer, and musician, beginning 1993. Formerly worked as a stockman on a cattle ranch, farm hand, landscape gardener, and waiter. Guest speaker and teacher in schools on creativity. Artist-in-residence and lecturer at schools and workshops. He was born in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, where he spent the first eleven and a half years of his life. After almost failing high school in Sydney, he lived the itinerate life of a stockman for some years on cattle stations in Queensland, before returning to Sydney to study fine arts and music. He then lived in the UK for three years, working as an equestrian artist, painting some of Britains leading polo ponies and thoroughbreds. He is now one of Australia’s most popular children’s author/illustrators, and has been published in several different languages around the world. He also works as a composer and as a flamenco guitarist.