Richard Sternoff Beyer (July 26, 1925 – April 9, 2012) was an American

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

from

Pateros, Washington Pateros is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, Okanogan County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census was 593. History Pateros was originally established as Ive's Landi ...

. Between 1968 and 2006, Beyer made over 90 sculptures.

Early life and education

Beyer was born in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on July 26, 1925. He was raised in

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several County (United States), counties and independent city (United States), independent cities in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. ...

, and graduated from Fairfax High School in 1943. Beyer enlisted in the U.S. Army in World War II, and served from 1944 to 1946, and was in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive or Unternehmen Die Wacht am Rhein, Wacht am Rhein, was the last major German Offensive (military), offensive Military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western ...

. Beyer earned a degree in social sciences from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, He moved to Seattle to work on an economics Ph.D. at

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

but did not complete the program. At age 75, in 2001, Beyer suffered a stroke, but he continued to create art. He died in New York City on April 9, 2012, after another stroke.

Work

Beyer was best known for his sculpture '' Waiting for the Interurban'' located in the Fremont neighborhood of

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, Washington. The sculpture, which is one of the most popular works of art in Seattle, was commissioned by the Fremont Arts Council and dedicated in 1978. It depicts six people and a dog waiting for the Seattle to Everett

Interurban The interurban (or radial railway in Canada) is a type of electric railway, with tram-like electric self-propelled railcars which run within and between cities or towns. The term "interurban" is usually used in North America, with other terms u ...

, a

public transportation Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whi ...

service that ended in the 1930s. Other sculptures by Beyer include a statue of Ivar Haglund in

('' Ivar Feeding the Gulls'', 1988), several sculptures in Kirkland, Washington, a statue of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee ...

, a sculpture of a

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

sitting on a bench in

Ellensburg, Washington Ellensburg is a city in and the county seat of Kittitas County, Washington, United States. It is located just east of the Cascade Range near the junction of Interstate 90 in Washington, Interstate 90 and Interstate 82. The population was 18,666 ...

, a sculpture of a fisherman kissing a fish in

Des Moines, Washington Des Moines ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 32,888 as of the 2020 census. The city is located on the east shore of Puget Sound, near the center of the Seattle metropolitan area. It is bordered by the ...

, and a sculpture of a kissing couple in

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington. It had a population of 55,605 at the 2020 census, making it the state of Washington's 23rd-most populous city. Olympia is the county seat of Thurston County, and the central city ...

described as "perhaps Olympia's most popular and well-known piece of public art". '' The Traveler'' (nicknamed "Art") is installed in Bend. The Charles Frederic Swigert Jr. Memorial Fountain is installed at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, Oregon.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beyer, Richard 1925 births 2012 deaths Columbia College (New York) alumni Fairfax High School (Fairfax, Virginia) alumni People from Okanogan County, Washington Sculptors from Washington (state) United States Army soldiers

Early life and education

Work

Further reading

References

External links