Gary Akers is one of America’s foremost contemporary realist painters, acclaimed for his mastery of watercolor, dry brush, and egg tempera painting. Known for luminous compositions and rich detail, Gary captures the beauty of rural Kentucky and the rugged coast of Maine. He dedicates himself to the ancient medium of egg tempera, applying hundreds of delicate layers to achieve a brilliance of light and shadow unmatched by other techniques.Gary’s career reflects both recognition and acclaim. 60 Minutes II featured one of his images, and Kentucky Educational Television’s Emmy Award–winning series Kentucky Life highlighted his work. He exhibits at the Speed Art Museum, the Ogunquit Museum, the National Academy of Design, and the Artists of America Exhibition. He received the Kentucky Watercolor Society’s top award and earned a Greenshields Foundation grant from Montreal, Canada, to advance his egg tempera painting. Gary also holds membership in the American Watercolor Society and the Kentucky Watercolor Society.As a prolific artist, Gary published Kentucky: Land of Beauty in 1999, a collection of more than 100 paintings that celebrate his home state. He released Memories of Maine in 2003, reflecting his deep connection to New England’s coastal landscapes.Gary, his wife, Lynn, and their daughter, Ashley, make their home in Union, Kentucky, where he paints in a restored 19th-century log cabin studio. They spend summers in Maine, where he continues to find inspiration along the St. George peninsula in their historic Green Schoolhouse studio. His paintings, celebrated for their beauty and craftsmanship, stand as lasting tributes to the landscapes he so deeply loves.