William E. Beyer

William E. Bill Beyer, a renowned New England watercolorist, died January 31, 2015, peacefully at the age of 85, after a lengthy illness. Bill was born and raised in Worcester and graduated from Pratt Institute in New York with a degree in Graphic Design. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War as an illustrator of field artillery books. In 1950, he founded the William E. Beyer Associates advertising agency on Newbury Street in Boston, which for 27 years serviced large national companies including John Hancock and Polaroid and local companies such as Weekly Reader, Boston Bruins, and Shoppers World. In the 1980s, his company merged with Dickinson Direct Mail and he later joined Hub Mail as vice president of Advertising. During this time, Bill fell in love with the pure fine art of watercolor and began painting. He opened a gallery in Quincys Marina Bay and built a watercolor business capturing peoples memories in portraits of homes, boats, and families. In addition to the personal memories he created for his gallery clients, Bills art will live on in his public work. In 1996, he founded the Marina Bay Arts Affair, which showcases artists work from 17 art associations throughout Greater Boston. In addition, Bill created many unique watercolor collage works that celebrated community landmarks and captured the essence of several local cities and towns. His signed and numbered prints raised valuable funds for each community, including The City of Champions painting that is still displayed in many buildings throughout Brockton. Bill received many local and national awards for his watercolor creations and was the featured artist for the Tall Ships of Boston 2000 celebration and the Kentucky Derby 2001 Run for The Roses. His work has been exhibited at the Copley Society in Boston, the Small, Small World Gallery in Rockport, the Todd Gallery in Wellesley and the Gourmet Cafe on Main Street in Brockton. He also served on the Board of Directors for the Milton Art Museum. Bill is survived by his wife of 60 years, Janice (Furber) Beyer; and his children, William D. Beyer of Reston, Va., and Laurel J. Beyer (Sibert) of Bridgewater; as well as his four grandchildren, Bucky and Penny Beyer and Trey and Cam Sibert. Visiting hours will be held Thursday, February 19, 2015, from 4-7 p.m., followed by a short celebration and prayer service at Conley Funeral Home, 138 Belmont Street (Rte. 123), in Brockton. In lieu of flowers and donations, Bills family would appreciate visits from friends to Janice at Baypointe Nursing Home, 50 Christy Place, in Brockton. For condolences and directions, please visit www.conleyfuneralhome.com.