Gill's progression from painting-printmaking to building miniature replicas  began in 1985, and his first Landmark Miniature was constructed in 1992.  The first simple miniatures were, in fact, "...a personal 3-D scrapbook of my travels around the world." 

Travel is a way of life for the artist.  He has personally visited all the landmark sites represented in his miniatures and counts over 60 visits to Europe alone.  During his travels, he locates a potential Landmark and then spends hours making sketches and photographing the Landmark from all angles.

In addition to his career as an artist, Gene Gill was an art  teacher with the Los Angeles School District for 25 years.