Joseph Q. Daily is a classically trained artist living & working in Vestal, NY. “Born in 1981 to two freelance illustrators, I have been making pictures for as long as I can remember. My early interests were in comics & cartooning … until 10th grade, when a fantastic art teacher opened the door for me into the world of carefully observed, representational drawing (thanks, Mrs. Jewett). I went on to study painting at the School of Visual Arts (BFA 2003 Illustration), where classes with Marvin Mattelson laid the foundation for my work as a naturalistic painter. I sold my first painted portrait while still in college, but after graduating, I was only able to sustain a trickle of commissions and soon resorted to a stint at house painting in order to stay afloat. With my last bits of spare time and money, I painted a full-length show-portrait of my then-fiancée’s father. Several months later, the painting ended up winning both Best of Show & The People’s Choice Award at the Portrait Society of America’s 2005 Competition. A fortuitous meeting with Minnie S. Churchill – director of the (Winston) Churchill Heritage and keynote speaker at the event – threw a struggling career into swift success. Over the next five years, I completed more than 80 commissioned portraits in the U.S. and the U.K. It was a wild ride.”