Humberto Gonzalez was born in Camargo, Tamaulipas, Mexico on March 25, 1944. His family immigrated to McAllen, Texas in 1954 and moved to the Chicago area in 1958, where he earned his B.A. in Art and Spanish Literature and an M.A. in Secondary Education with an emphasis on Art. In 1971, Gonzalez moved to Lebanon, Oregon to accept a teaching position at Lebanon Union High School where he taught Spanish, painting, drawing and English before retiring in 1999. At present, he lives in Portland and continues to paint full time. He exhibits his watercolors frequently throughout Oregon, has won numerous awards, and has been represented by the Karin Clarke Gallery since 2004. His paintings are lush, colorful, and often done outdoors in the plein-air tradition.