Douglas L. Walker

    Douglas L. Walker’s lifelong passion for art began in his early childhood and was firmly established by a national art contest win in the fourth grade. At age fifteen, his dedication and talent led to an invitation to attend classes at the California College of Arts and Crafts, where he honed his skills in drawing and painting.

    After serving in Vietnam, Walker returned to civilian life with a renewed focus on art, immersing himself in California’s natural beauty — particularly the towering redwoods — which inspired his early landscape work. He pursued studies in both architecture and art at a community college in Stockton, California, before committing to art full-time. Walker earned his Bachelor of Arts from the Maine College of Art, later attending graduate school at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

    Opening his first full-time studio in Merrimack, Massachusetts, Walker quickly established himself in the art world with a solo exhibition at Portland, Maine’s Tom Croddy Gallery. During this period, he developed an innovative silk screen painting technique and produced large-scale works, some as expansive as six by twelve feet. His entrepreneurial spirit led to the opening of his own gallery in Boothbay Harbor, Maine — a successful venture that he ultimately sold to devote himself fully to painting once again.

    His artistic journey has taken him across the globe — from exhibiting with the Bermuda Society of Arts and painting full-time in Bermuda, to opening studios on Cannery Row in Monterey, California, and a gallery in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Later, relocating to Santa Fe, New Mexico, Walker balanced his creative practice with academic pursuits, earning both a Master’s and Doctorate in Theology.

    Over the decades, Walker’s work has evolved through distinct phases—from abstract explorations of the 1970s to representational portraiture in the 1990s, and now to deeply atmospheric landscape paintings. His current series reflects a lifelong fascination with light—its movement, reflection, and emotional resonance in nature.

    Now residing in Winlock, Washington, Walker continues to paint daily, guided by curiosity and humility. “At 77,” he says, “I am still learning how to paint.”