George Beyer (1900 - 1985)

 

George Beyer was an early proponent of silk-screen or serigraph printmaking in Minnesota.  In 1941, he published a booklet titled “Screen Print Technique. " 

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His earliest silk-screen print is a 1938 version of Stanford Fenelle’s “Grey Day.” This print was created when the WPA Federal Art Project in New York City formed the Silk Screen Unit of its Graphic Section, headed by Anthony Velonis. That same year, Contemporary Arts, a midtown New York gallery, had the first gallery exhibition of screenprints. 

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Beyer was a political and social activist who took part in demonstrations favoring federal unemployment compensation for artists and other programs.  While in his 70’s he acted as advisor to the Poster Factory, a group of poster makers at the University of Minnesota specializing in posters on antiwar and social issues.

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Beyer studied at the Minneapolis School of Art with Anthony Angarola, Cameron Booth, and Sydney Dickenson.  In addition, he was a member of the Artists League of America, National Serigraph Society, and Palettite Society; and he was also an instructor in screen printing at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. 

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He exhibited at the Minnesota State Fair, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Elisabeth Ney Museum in Austin, Texas, the National Serigraph Society, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the St. Paul Gallery and School of Art.  His works are in many collections, including the Elisabeth Ney Museum, the Library of Congress, and the Minnesota Historical Society.