Instructor Profile

Biography:
When George Allen Durkee began painting in 1965, there were no art schools nearby, so he enrolled in a correspondence course designed by some of the great illustrators – Albert Dorn, Robert Fawcett and Norman Rockwell. Coached by knowledgeable teachers, he worked a night job in order to study and practice during daylight hours. Without the imposed structure of a classroom schedule, he learned to work on his own. After completing the course, George quit the night job, and with twelve days worth of vacation pay in his pocket he became a full-time painter. For the next few years, he painted his way from town to town, selling art to passersby. Trading a painting in San Francisco for a few hundred dollars, he moved in. Within six months, his paintings appeared in a prominent gallery – between the work of Picasso and Miro. Hundreds of George’s cityscapes were dispersed worldwide. In 2001, ready for a quieter life, he moved to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Northern California to paint landscapes. Durkee is a past contributor to The Artist’s Magazine and American Artist. A knowledgeable teacher, he prefers to work one-on-one with a few select students. He and his artist wife, Sharon Strong, are co-owners of an art gallery in Murphys, California.

Gallery: Click on each image to enlarge.

Class Schedule: