Richard McDaniel possesses the rare ability to help students improve their work, regardless of their aptitude or stylistic viewpoint. His goal is to help students be more effective in achieving their own artistic goals. Nationally recognized as an artist, author, and teacher, Richard has written five books on art, including The Drawing Book and Landscape, both published by Watson-Guptill, as well as his newest work, ON LOCATION: Plein Air Painting in Pastel, published by International Artist. He taught drawing, painting, and pastel for seventeen years at the Woodstock School of Art in New York before returning to his native California to join the faculty of the Pacific Academy of Fine Arts. Previously he taught at Connecticut State University, and has conducted painting workshops since 1978. McDaniel studied art in New York and California before earning his M.F.A. at the University of Notre Dame.

His paintings and drawings are exhibited widely and are in major collections throughout the country. He is listed in Who's Who in American Art, Who's Who in America, and Who's Who in the World. Richard McDaniel holds membership in the American Impressionist Society and Oil Painters of America, and is a signature member of the Pastel Society of America, the Pastel Society of the West Coast and the National Academy of Professional Plein Air Painters. Articles on his work have appeared in American Artist, Art Times, Pastel Journal, Pastel Artist International, and International Artist .