J. Adam McGalliard received a BFA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) where he was the recipient of the Myrtle Reeves Scholarship and an MFA from the New York Academy of Art where he was granted a scholarship for study. Before moving to New York, McGalliard taught painting, drawing, and printmaking as a faculty member at the Sawtooth Center for Visual Art in Winston-Salem, NC. In New York, he has taught as an Adjunct Painting Professor at Brooklyn College and as a painter and sculptor for artist Jeff Koons.

An exhibiting artist since 1996, McGalliard has participated in many solo and group shows with galleries throughout the U.S. including Grey McGear Modern (Santa Monica, CA), the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center at Northern Kentucky University (Highland Heights, KY), the Green Hill Center for North Carolina Art (Greensboro, NC), the Weatherspoon Museum at the University of NC at Greensboro (Greensboro, NC) and the Catherine Smith Gallery at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). His work can be found in numerous public and private collections across the United States, South America and Europe, including the Sara Lee/Hanes Corporation, R. and M. Pulitzer (Private Collection) and the Weaver Foundation.