Born in Graham, NC in 1951, Alan's innate artistic talent manifest itself  early in drawings using charcoal, pastels, pencil, and oil paintings of landscape, still life, and wild life. This early work revealed the illustrative manner apparent in artistic children, but also a more advanced concern for lighting, shading, and color. Alan's abilities and attention to detail can be seen in his extended family as well as his mother's fine oil painting and his father's ability as a wood carver and a mechanical engineer. These influences helped to guide and mold his artistic vision and offerings as a young man.

After school his art career took a back seat to working as a carpenter on the island of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Learning the structural balances of construction and how to make things fit together, transferred into Alan's painting architecture as well as landscapes of the scenic island. With an increasing affinity for coastal subjects Alan moved back near his North Carolina roots to the capital city of Raleigh, where we began our story.

"The Hatteras Light" was Alan's first limited edition reproduction in 1982. Highly successful, it was followed by other reproductions of "Swansboro", "Ocracoke", and "Old Baldy". The success of these paintings led Alan to relocate to the old port town of Beaufort on the North Carolina coast in 1984. The Beaufort destination was steeped in historic traditions and the perfect place for Alan to open Down East Gallery to showcase his coastal artwork.