Julie Starling started her painting career in 1990 as a professional face painter in the DC area while she was teaching dramatics, music, and movement programs at local preschools and day camps.  In 1993, she moved most of her music teaching home, which gave her time to begin working in more permanent media. By 2001, she had so many requests that she started teaching drawing and painting. In addition to her classes at home, she teaches art at Chevy Chase House, and gives workshops at Plaza Rockville and Towson as well as for Chroma in the D.C. area. She also taught art summer camp for the last three years at Little Picasso in Rockville, MD. She is currently finishing up a Studio Art Certificate at Montgomery College Rockville to add to her B.A. in Drama.

Julie Starling has an ongoing pet portrait display at the Mud Hut in Olney, Maryland and at Takoma Park Animal Clinic in Takoma Park, MD.   In addition, she has had pieces in the Rockville Art League shows, the Montgomery College student shows and website, and other locations around the area.   Fall 2006, she painted two signs for the Mongtomery County Humane Society and was also asked to do several paintings for their Dances With Dogs fundraiser. In  Fall 2005, she was the Directing Artist for a student bench-painting art project for the Washington Humane Society in DC.  (Bench Photos)

Julie Starling currently lives in Silver Spring, Maryland with her husband Stephen and five small dogs (most of which were rescues from the Montgomery County Humane Society).  When she is not painting, she is busy teaching piano, guitar, and art lessons and taking long walks with her husband and dogs. She especially loves to  paint plein air at the National Zoo.

Animals, children, and nature have always been central in Julie Starling's life and so they have become the central themes of her art as well.  Her ongoing project is to raise money for the local animal rescue groups by donating 30% of the sales of commissioned portraits to them. (see Links page).