Born in Massachusetts to Greek immigrant parents, Gregory Kondos grew up to become the quintessential California landscape artist. Influenced by Impressionist painters like Paul Cezanne and Paul Gauguin, Kondos produced works that capture the unique beauty of the Golden State. After attending art school in Los Angeles, he started teaching at his alma mater, Sacramento City College, in 1956. When he retired from teaching in 1982, the school renamed the campus art gallery the Gregory Kondos Gallery. He’s an artist in residence at Yosemite National Park, and his paintings hang in galleries all over the world, including several in the People’s Republic of China.