Born into an artistic family, Dorian Vallejo began drawing before he could walk and his first commissions were at the age of 11. Vallejo's career began formally in his late teens when he began receiving commissions from publishing houses in New York while attending the School of Visual Arts in New York. As the field increasingly began to incorporate the use of computer-generated images, Vallejo felt the need to pursue other avenues with his art. His love of traditional media and the figure, drew him to portraiture and to focus on personal work, where he explores his other artistic interests. These days Vallejo spends most of his time creating paintings and drawings for sale through galleries.