Gurney attended college at Pratt Institute[1][8] in Brooklyn, NY where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in illustration.
Gurney’s work first drew national attention when he won a nationwide poster contest for Molson Golden Ale which appeared in Rolling Stone magazine.
[2][9] The poster depicted a skier flying through the air about to grab a glass of brew from a helpful dog, pouring the bottle.
[9] At this time, he also created illustrations for greeting cards, promotional posters for various companies, publications, and educational publishers, and drew caricatures for parties and social gatherings.
[7][9] After the publication of his second illustrated book, The Night Before Christmas (Scholastic, 1985), Gurney was hired to create the original covers and internal drawings for the Bailey School Kids and A to Z Mysteries series.
Gurney uses people from his hometown of Brattleboro, Vermont to pose as models for his illustrations in his chapter book series.
[2][9] Gurney travels to elementary schools around the United States and the world to give presentations to students regarding his work as an author and illustrator.