Zachary Proctor, one of Mondo Fine Art's talented artists, says that he is inspired by the masters, and specifically John Singer Sargent.  Sargent was one of the leading American portrait painters during his era.  Zachary says "I do love Sargent but my favorite painter is by far Diego Velazquez."  Incidentally a Wikipedia article states that Sargent used the "alla prima method of working directly on the canvas with a loaded brush, derived from Diego Velazquez."  So it's not surprising to pair the two together.   Diego Velazquez was a Spanish portrait painter during the Baroque period.  According to Zachary "Velazquez is head and shoulders above" the other artists.  Several realist and Impressionist painters have also modeled their work after Velazquez. As for influences in terms of mentors or teachers, Zachary lists Paul Davis for his drawing abilities, Dave Dornan for his paint quality and Tony Smith for his attention to color and soft edges. To see Zachary Proctor's work check out his profile with Mondo Fine Art.