Dancing Bear

Chances are you’ve already seen the print of dancing bears in a forest glade. If it’s a clear copy, you can make out the picnic tables and the spilled basket of berries. Even if it’s dark and cloudy, you can see there are hundreds of black, brown and white bears cavorting under the trees, with many more on their way to the party. William Holbrook Beard was born in Ohio in 1824. He studied art in Italy, Germany and Switzerland before returning to New York as a portrait artist. Eventually he became better known for his comical or satirical oil-and-canvass paintings of squirrels, monkeys, cats and especially bears. I’ve seen his framed prints for sale in home furnishing stores, and displayed on the walls of pubs and steakhouses. What I don’t see are plaques or labels proclaiming them to be Beard’s work. Sadly the paintings have become more famous than the painter.