BETTE W. MILLER

MILLER BETTE W.

Bette W. Miller was an artist. She was one of only a couple dozen artists juried into Artists at Work, a new concept gallery, based on the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, VA, in a renovated warehouse on Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, in 1979. In 1981, she co-founded and directed Artists in Action with three female artists on Carson Street, Southside. She was a drawing instructor at CCAC, 1979-1991; the sculpture chair for the Three Rivers Arts Festival, 1980-1984; the director of the first annual Art Room exhibit at South Hills Village, 1985; chair for the "Point to Port" exhibition, University of Pittsburgh Gallery, 1989; and a faculty member of South Arts, Upper St. Clair, 1986-1990. Bette was a past member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts Pittsburgh Society of Artists and Naples Art Association. Born Mary Elizabeth in 1925, Bette died in July 2018. She was the daughter of Frances and William Daley; stepdaughter of Lee Carse; sister of Dr. Mildred Pagelow and William Daley, all deceased, and Bernadette Lucci of CA. Married to Henry Weinbrenner for 36 years and widowed in 1979, she supported herself through her art. She was proficient in charcoal, acrylics and oils; she also enjoyed calligraphy, spray painting, water colors and mixed-media. She was an avid reader and proficient gardener. Bette studied at Seton Hill College and Carnegie Tech, now universities; the University of Pittsburgh; and in California, Florida, New York, France and Germany. She was awarded a fellowship to study painting in Lucca, Italy. She exhibited at the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; Westmoreland Museum of Art, Greensburg; Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH; Studio Z, Pittsburgh; the University Club, Pitt; Allegheny County Courthouse; Velar Gallery, CMU; Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh Society of Artists, North Hills Artists' and Craftsmen's Open; and the Heinz Endowment Galleries. She demonstrated her craft at Three Rivers Arts festivals as well as sold her paintings. Her paintings took awards at the von Liebig Art Center, Naples, Fl.; the Visual Art Center, Punta Gorda, Fl.; Bondstreet Gallery, Naples and Pittsburgh; Concept Art Gallery and Borelli-Edwards Art Gallery, both in Pittsburgh; North Hills Art Center; and the former Bird in the Hand Gallery, Sewickley. Her works are in private collections around the country and abroad and in corporate collections at Highmark, Cranberry Township Municipality and Minutello's Restaurant, formerly Mt. Lebanon. She left an unfinished painting at the time of her death, a reflection of the First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh in the windows of PPG Place. A History of Bradford Woods, 1993, includes one of her illustrations. Survived by her husband of almost 27 years, Donald A. Miller of Naples, FL, formerly the Art and Architecture Critic for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and freelance critic for 15 years for the Naples Daily News; her children and their spouses, Alice, Eric, Cindy, Rick, Rob and George; grandchildren and spouses, Christina, Derek, Kelly, Jason, Annie, Brian, Stacy and Tyler; great-grandchildren, Collin, Brianna, Kaylee, Brandon, Elliott and Katie; and several nephews and a niece and their families. Donald felt that in many ways Bette was a perfect partner for him because she never interfered with his work and they had many happy times in the house that they loved, watching her family grow and prosper. A private memorial service was held at Chartiers Cemetery. Placing her remains there was the perfect way to reach her descendants: Donald said it was a joint decision. Memorials can be made to Avow Hospice House, 1095 Whippoorwill Lane, Naples, FL 34105, where she spent her last four days, or to Planned Parenthood Naples Center, 1425 Creech Rd., Naples, FL 34103.