William Beaver

William Beaver
Painter, Sculptor, Scientist, Engineer
Biography
William Beaver was born in Kansas City, Missouri and lived in that state until graduating from the University of Missouri with a BS degree in Physics. It may be that an influence on his art work comes from his technical education and interests. However, his love of art and painting came before his formal education. As a child he often visited the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art with his father. It was clear that his father enjoyed viewing the art and that was a big factor on the development of his love of art. He started working as a painters apprentice when only 15 years old, during the summer school vacations. He worked in his older brothers painting and decorating company. As an apprentice, he was instructed in the basics, cleaning brushes, mixing paints, various methods used in interior painting and the techniques of trompe loeil decorating. Through high school and university he worked part time for 6 years in this craft perfecting his skills. During his undergraduate work he took courses in drawing, design and descriptive geometry and audited many courses in art. However, his primary interest during this period was in the field of science. After re...