Mark was born to artistic parents; his mother an actress and father a portrait artist in Buffalo, NY. Art in one form or fashion has always been in his blood. His father having raised 5 children through teaching and painting portraits, encouraged his children to pursue a more "practical" career, so he chose a degree in Travel/Tourism and Hotel Management which allowed him a successful career ultimately as a sales and marketing director in the hotel industry.

In his mid 20's the company he was working for, Ritz-Carlton hotels, transferred him out to Rancho Mirage CA from Washington, DC. It was there that he began painting small watercolors of desert scenes.

About a year and a half later, he was promoted to a new position at the Ritz Carlton in Pentagon City, VA and shortly after his return, had his first art opening at a small coffee house in Washington's Adams Morgan neighborhood in 1996. From there, his career as an artist solidified.

In late 1999, he took a "leap of faith" resigning from his Sales and Marketing director position to pursue his art career. Because of his sales and marketing background, he was asked to direct Touchstone Gallery in DC which he had been a member of for a several years. After a couple years, he learned of a small Kentucky town named Paducah was practically giving away houses and buildings to artists, though most were in major disrepair. After traveling there, he fell in love with a 5000 square foot federal style, pre-civil war building that was all boarded up but was "calling [his] name". He moved to Paducah in 2002 until 2007. The gallery, after an extensive year long renovation, opened in September of 2003 where he had a 4+ year run representing 30 - 40 artists.

In the spring of 2007, he experienced some challenging health issues and put the building up for sale while moving back to his hometown for the next 7 years. After a strong health recovery, he opted for a warmer climate and moved to Florida's space coast where he has maintained his home and studio since mid-2015.