Dorothy Beedle, Watercolorist
"I consider myself a twenties model," says Dorothy Beedle, with a grin, "because I was born in the 1920's." The energetic, silver-haired artist can most often be found tucked into a small corner of the Ferry Trails Art Gallery in Republic, Washington, either sketching, painting, or assisting customers.
She stands there with me now, framed on all sides by her oil and watercolor paintings. "I’m self-taught" she says with a touch of apology as well as pride in her voice. "I was in my forties. We were living in Forks, Washington and I ordered a paint-by-numbers kit from Sears. The kit was supposed to have included brushes, paint, and three canvases: one with numbers, one with just a design, and one blank." She laughs. "All that arrived was the paint and brushes." It was much later, on a shopping trip to Port Angeles, that she happened on a pad of oil-painting paper. She completed her first painting in 1959, choosing a bouquet of trilliums for her subject matter. She leads me to a more recent watercolor of the small, tri-petaled flowers hanging in a sunny spot by the gallery window. It’s displayed along side other paintings of wildflowers. "I still have my first oil painting of the trilliums" she admits with a smile. "I’ve kept it the way folks keep the first dollar they earned."
Born in Hamilton, Ohio in 1920, Dorothy moved across country to Washington State in 1936 and two years later married Clifford Beedle. "My husband was a game warden, and I was a city girl." She moved with him to Republic in 1962 and spent the next five years raising her six children. She and her family left Republic in 1967 and moved to Sequim, Washington. Her husband died two years later and, soon after, Dorothy returned to Republic. "I came back, because I like the four seasons, and the slower lifestyle, and the friendly people."
Upon returning to Republic in 1970, she joined an artist’s group and for the first time began displaying and selling her work in local stores and malls, and at the county fair. She’s been involved in local arts ever since. During the seventies she spearheaded the addition of an art show to the annual Prospector Days celebration in Republic. During the eighties, while Ferry County labored to survive the economic slump that gripped the U.S, she chaired the Economic Development Arts Promotion committee and later helped organize the Eureka Arts Cooperative, a non-profit organization that promoted the work of local artists. In recent years, she’s displayed her art in a small gallery (first called Dorothy's Art Studio and now renamed Ferry Trails Art Gallery) located across the street from the Stonerose Interpretive Center.
"...I want to meet the people who buy my work - to know my art will go to a good home.... "
Though she worked with oils for many years, concerns about using paint thinner and turpentine indoors during the long, Ferry County winters led her to switch to watercolors. "I work with water colors now, though my style hasn’t changed. I still paint as I did with oils." She spends a few moments detailing the qualities and cost of sable versus synthetic brushes, explaining along the way that she doesn’t use washes to dilute her paints. As a consequence her paintings are less faded and romantic, and more vibrant than the typical watercolor. I find my eyes drawn to an eye-catching painting of Oregon Grape. With its highly-saturated, multi-color leaves and blue berries, it’s the perfect subject matter for Beedles’ style of painting.
The gallery contains the work of other artists as well as a small display of historical memorabilia donated by Gary Anderson of Anderson Rentals. "I call this part of the gallery the Working Men’s Art Museum…,” she says pointing at a selection of old tools, with oil paintings of mountain scenes hanging above. "…for the loggers, miners, and ranchers in the area."
"I don’t exhibit outside of Republic anymore," Dorothy tells me. Though often urged to sell her work on the Web, she’s resisted the notion. "I don’t want to sell on the internet. I want to meet the people who buy my work - to know my art will go to a good home," adding, "if you don’t put emotion into your work, it’s just hack work."
Contact Information
Dorothy Beedle
509-775-2249
No email available.
The Ferry Trails Art Gallery and Dorothy is working from her home studio.
Acknowledgements
Ferrycounty.com wishes to thank Dorothy Beedle for permission to photograph the exterior and interior of the Ferry Trails Art Studio, and for verifying the information in this article. Article by Sarah Lawrence, published on June 15, 2003. Article text and photographs of Beedle's art work were updated Oct. 20, 2004 with permission of Dorothy Beedle.
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