Gallery problem. Can't build multiple galleries on one page

I know this has been asked before, but I’ve not found any good answers, and it seems it should be possible. I need to build an “artists” page similar to this one http://www.powersgallery.com/artists/index.html

For the life of me, I can’t figure out how to populate a page with a featured image (post? page? whatever) that, when clicked, leads to a gallery of that artist’s work.

Can this be done easily? Couple things:

1. Yes, I’m relatively new to WordPress
2. I tried Cleaner Gallery
3. I’ve tried NextGen
4. I’ve tried WP native gallery
5. I’ve failed at them all.

Any/all help appreciated!