A native of Chicago, Dick Behrends returned home after
serving over three years during World War II in both
the European and Pacific Theatres with the 86th Division.
Starting his career as a Graphic Designer, he switched
gears and became an Art Director and later a Creative
Director for a Michigan Avenue advertising agency. In
1957 he joined a High Point, NC agency, became president,
and remained with Behrends & Company until his retirement
in 1990.
Although it was always there, his interest
in the West was enhanced when he spent a year after
high school
hitch hiking the West.
Throughout his business life, his creative
efforts were confined to developing ad campaigns for
the agency’s
clients. But all along he knew that someday, when he
had the time, he would try his hand at sculpture and
begin to put into three dimension some of the images
of the West that he held in his mind.
As a sculptor, Behrends is basically self-taught, although
he did attend evening classes at The Art Institute of
Chicago and the Institute of Design, concentrating on
Graphic Design.
Today his subjects mostly depict cowboys, soldiers,
Indians, and their horses. The interaction between man
and his horse is usually subtle or understated with
an emphasis on authentic detail.
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