Leo J. Beaulaurier
Leo J. Beaulaurier | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 10, 1911 |
| Died | February 11, 1984 (aged 72) |
Leo James Beaulaurier (May 11, 1911–February 11, 1984) was a 20th-century American painter. He is best known for his United States post office murals painted for the New Deal art projects, and his portraits of Native American people done on velvet ground.
Life and career
Beaulaurier was born in Great Falls, Montana, in 1911.[1][2] He attended Great Falls High School and Notre Dame, and then won a scholarship to the Art Center of Los Angeles.[1][3] He heard about the post-office art project while he was in Los Angeles and applied.[4] He was commissioned in 1939 to do the murals for United States Post Office and Courthouse–Billings in Billings, Montana.[5] He originally submitted for the Glasgow, Montana, mural, but was asked to do the federal building instead.[6] He reported in 1983 that he had been paid $1,200 for the work, which took him about three weeks to complete.[7] He was later commissioned to paint murals for the post office in Langdon, North Dakota.[7]
Beaulaurier served as a captain in the U.S. Ferry Command during World War II.[1] He helped install the Billings mural while home on military deferment for a broken leg.[4]
Upon returning home from the war, he worked with his dad and brother at his father's contracting business, and got married.[1] Around 1959 he went back to painting full-time.[4] He painted Western subjects including Native Americans.[4][8] He began painting on black velvet around 1962.[9] There was an exhibit of his work at the Historical Society of Montana in 1963.[10] He often exhibited at the Montana State Fair.[10]
He lived in Montana almost his whole life and died in Cascade County in 1984.[4][11] He and his wife had two kids together; she died in 1978.[4]
References
- 1 2 3 4 "Beaulaurier, area artist, dies". Great Falls Tribune. February 12, 1984. p. 11. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "Leo Beaulaurier, Feb 1984". United States Social Security Death Index. FamilySearch.
- ↑ "Beaulaurier Wins Honor". The Great Falls Leader. June 24, 1937. p. 7. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Beaulaurier's art works span 50 years". Great Falls Tribune. February 13, 1984. p. 5. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "Leo Beaulaurier Gets Commission to Paint Mural at Post Office". Great Falls Tribune. March 28, 1939. p. 10. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "Falls Artist to Execute a Mural for Billings". Great Falls Tribune. November 14, 1941. p. 8. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- 1 2 "'30s post-office mural artist is still painting". The Billings Gazette. April 10, 1983. p. 25. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "Gallery offers poetry, art, music". Great Falls Tribune. September 2, 2005. p. 30. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "He paints portraits on velvet". Great Falls Tribune. February 23, 1964. p. 72. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- 1 2 "Paintings by Leo J. Beaulaurier displayed in Historical Society of Montana". Great Falls Tribune. February 5, 1963. p. 11. Retrieved 2026-07-29.
- ↑ "Entry for Leo Beaulaurier, 11 Feb 1984". Montana, Death Index, 1860–2007. FamilySearch.