Mark Bettis grew up in Chicago but later chose sunny Sarasota, Florida, as his home base. He attended the Ringling School of Art and Design, concentrating on computer graphics, and then went to work as a designer in the advertising industry.

  His true love was studio art, though. Bettis seized an opportunity to relocate to Asheville, North Carolina, where he joined the ranks of talented artists occupying the nooks and crannies of the evolving River Arts District (RAD).

  That move to RAD turned out to be a professional catalyst for Bettis, and his Mark Bettis Studio and Gallery in the historic Wedge Studios Building today features not just his own artist expressions, but the creations of other sought-after artists as well.

  Galleries across the United States have shown the paintings of Mark Bettis, and themed exhibitions of his work are ongoing at his own color-saturated gallery.