Alaska arts community remembers painter Byron Birdsall

The Alaska arts community is celebrating the life of famed artist Byron Birdsall who died Sunday evening, just days shy of his 79th birthday.

Birdsall was best known for his watercolor work but he proved to be an artist of many capabilities. “I think it was the whole spectrum of his work that makes him such an important artist,” said Tennys Owens, owner of Artique Ltd. in Anchorage.

Owens worked with Birdsall for more than 30 years. “We had a very personal relationship, a wonderful friendship and a wonderful professional friendship,” Owens said. Artique Ltd. is the only gallery in Anchorage selling original Birdsall work. Owens worked with Birdsall on a painting for Anchorage’s Centennial Celebration and the pair also worked on a number of commissioned paintings and projects for nonprofits.

“There’s probably not too many homes in Alaska that doesn’t have a piece of his work in their home, or would like one,’ said Tammy Phillips, owner of Phillips Studio & Gallery in Fairbanks. Phillips, a watercolor painter, said she admired Birdsall’s use of color and risk-taking. “He was a leader I guess you could say, gave us all kind of permission to do our own thing.”

Birdsall would often say he “lived to paint,” a saying that inspired his colleagues to spend time doing their passions. “Really most of his life was spent at an easel with a new idea, with a new thought, a new thing that he wanted to put on paper or canvas,” said Owens.

Birdsall split his time between his homes in Washington and Anchorage. His birthday 79th birthday would have been Dec. 18.