Doug LaRue
Doug LaRue quickly developed a passion for drawing and painting from his mother, an accomplished oil painter and the technical aspects of photography, design and sports from his father, a mechanical engineer at National Helium Reserve noted for his design work on Helium transport vehicles and the C5-A military transport aircraft and for his side hustle as a NCAA Football Referee.
In high school, Doug began to win art contests, took honors classes, played Baseball and Golf. Doug worked at camera stores, theaters and photography labs while assisting professional photographers. LaRue attended classes in advanced photography at Southern Methodist University while working as a cart manager at a golf course in Dallas. LaRue attended field trips to local news media affiliates and publishing companies. His high school yearbook staff won a national design award and was featured in a documentary film— all of which led to a college scholarship.
LaRue graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Design from Texas A&M University College of Architecture while working as a NCAA Sports Photojournalist for United Press International and Associated Press.
LaRue landed a position as a Medical Illustrator for the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences producing art with traditional mediums, computers, cameras, video, film and digital press equipment.
His education continued in media design, illustration and photography through workshops offered to state agencies including the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Advanced Airbrush workshops at the Smithsonian Institute of Natural History in Washington, D.C.
Doug’s career has always included elements of artistic expression through conceptual design in a variety of industries. He has designed commercial architecture, designed and published children’s books, history books, magazines, websites, LaRue Art Directed a live 3D Avatar video animation interface for a referee’s coin toss on the field creating new high visibility advertising space for charities.
The 3D Avatar premiered on the jumbo-tron at the 2010 Liberty Bowl.
LaRue has photographed science and music documentary films, art directed feature films (one with Academy Award winning actor George Kennedy).
LaRue wrote, produced and directed a Screen Actor’s Guild (SAG) independent film Barlow Grants Wish, produced and directed music videos and live concert films including Van Wilks • Low Down, Wound up, Rockin' Texas Blues.
Doug even quit a tech job to appear in Mike Judge's Fox Searchlight movie Idiocracy. Austin was a buzz when the creator of such masterpieces of pop culture comedy like Beavis and Butthead and King of the Hill began production on his prophetic feature film.
After spending a long career creating art for a wide range of clients in several industries, Doug now focuses a majority of his time on a career in fine art.
Selected Art Exhibitions
• Sonic Vision: How Music is the Soundtrack to Our Lives • Round Rock Arts & Culture, City Arts Center • 25
• Perspectives, Ardest Gallery, The Woodlands, Texas • Feb-March • 25
• NeWorld Gallery residency Austin, Texas • 24 - current
• New Beginnings juried show, Lisa Hoekstra, Gallery at Texas State University • 25
• Shutterbuggin’ Round Rock Arts & Culture, City Arts Center • 25
• Primal Art Gallery, curated by Joe Lednicky, Dripping Springs, Texas • 22- current
• Art City Austin, Jennifer M. Ramos, Art Alliance Austin, April 12-13 • 19
• Solo Show, MidTown Art Gallery • Austin, Texas March • 19
• Spring Gallery Show, Juried by William Campbell, Fort Worth Community Arts Center • 19
• 13th Annual People’s Gallery Exhibition, Suzanne Burton, Austin City Hall • 17-18
• AVAA Members Shows, Kelli Montgomery, AVAA, Art Space Gallery • 95/08/14/16
• Art De Eletoka group show, Shad C. Chancey • Austin, Texas • 07
• International Group Show, Charlene Franz, Museum of Fine Art Austin, Univ. of Texas • 96
• ACA Awards Show, Texas State Capitol Building, Artist’s Coalition of Austin • 94-95
• Fixations, ACA Members Shows • Artist’s Coalition of Austin Gallery, Austin • 92, 93
• Country Paintings solo show, Brazos Stock Exchange Art Gallery, Bryan, Texas • 89
• Awards Show Exhibitions, Wright Gallery, Texas A&M University, College Station • 85-87
13th Annual People’s Gallery Exhibition, Austin City Hall 17-18. Now in the Wittliff Collections
Collections of Note
• The Wittliff Collections, Alkek Library at Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas
• Forsyth Gallery Collections, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
• Austin Public Library
• City of Austin Music Archives
• South Austin Museum of Popular Culture
Ardest Gallery, The Woodlands, Texas
Awards
• Round Rock Arts & Culture Public Arts program, mural installed in Downtown Round Rock • 25
• Guest Juror Carla Bisong awards LaRue with 2 of the 3 top selections in Perspectives, Ardest Gallery, The Woodlands, Texas • Feb-March • 25
• Indie Fest Award • SAG Indie film Barlow Grants Wish 14
• GD USA American Graphic Design Awards for Package Design, Immunologic Health 14
• GD USA American Graphic Design Awards for Package Design, Immunologic Health 12
• Nominated Music Video of the Year, Austin Music Network 06
• Featured Artist 2nd Place Range of Motion Texas Chiropractic Magazine, Texas State Capitol Bldg. 95
• 1st Place Digital Art 2nd Annual Greater Austin Multimedia Shoot Out 95
• 1st Place in the SCAVMA Photography Contest B&W Texture - Texas A&M University 87
• Best Student Works - Awards Showcase, Texas A&M Visual Arts Committee Artfest 86 • The Deans List, College of Architecture - Texas A&M University 86
Selected Press/Texts
• Featured cover article, Doug LaRue, Switching it Up, Keeping Things Spicy, Steam Magazine 16
•Featured speaker, Final Cut Pro Non-Linear Video Editing, Capitol Macintosh • Austin, Texas 03
• Guest speaker, New Media Technology, Estates West Magazine • Park City, Utah 00
Selected Film Projects
• Producer / Director / Editor / Screen Actors Guild Indie film Barlow Grants Wish 14
• Camera Operator on the motion picture Doonby • written / directed by Peter Mackenzie, starring John Schneider, Ernie Hudson • 10
• Director of Photography, documentaries on archeology, ancient boat design at Tiwanaku, Isle Serique, Copacabana on Lake Titicaca, Bolivia and Peru Digging For The Truth, The History Channel • 08
Glaze Studios / Cinestar Films Production Crew in Tiwanaku, Bolivia filming during the Solstice
• Producer / Director of the documentary film Strange Daze • 08
• Appeared in the Fox / Searchlight motion picture Idiocracy by Mike Judge • 06
• Van Wilks • Low Down, Wound up, Rockin' Texas Blues • produced concert film, package design, poster art.
• Producer / Director of the documentary film series
Austin Groove • 03
• 35mm film Post Production • D1 Art Direction for the Movie Rigged with Academy Award winner George Kennedy Austin Texas and Burbank, California • 96
Associations/Boards
• Producer of Austin Art Park pop-up Art events • 24- current
• Board of Directors, Summer in the City Arts & Music Festival, Austin, Texas • 05
• Judge - Blue Pencil & Gold Screen Awards, National Association of Government Communicators • 97
• Board of Directors, Artist Coalition of Austin • 92 - 94
More info on Doug FAQ&A (interview transcript)