Doug Baltz was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He had a love of making art from an early age. As soon as he was old enough to hold a crayon he began to express his artistic side. He first realized how good he was in first grade when his art teacher held up his self portrait to the rest of the class as an example of what they could be doing. He studied art all the way through high school and upon graduating he attended Southeast Missouri State University. While there he continued his art education and studied under Bill Chamberlain and Lane Fabrick, learning much of what would shape his artistic style. He later moved to Dallas, Texas and played bass in several bands in the area, before moving to Cleveland, Ohio. While in Ohio his art style began to solidify, and he quit his job to concentrate full time on making art. Doug now lives in Paducah, Kentucky and owns his own business, Darkwater Studios, through which he sells his work. His main love is acrylic painting, but he also works in watercolor, pen and ink, pastel, and graphite. He recently began to work in screen printing, making limited edition t-shirts. Doug is represented by the Mac Worthington Gallery in Columbus, OH and the Karsen Kelley Gallery in Paducah, KY. He is a member of the Portrait Society of America and the PAPA Gallery in Paducah, KY. He was named by World of Art Magazine to the Top 50 Up and Coming Artists in 2004 and to the Top 100 Contemporary Artists in 2006.
DOUG'S BLOG:
The Artist Struggles, documenting his climb up the hill on the business side of art.
