Don "Bemco" Bennett was born in South Dakota, but his home was Ketchum, where his paintings, teachings and love of the outdoors made him a valley icon. Bennett died Jan. 7 at his Ketchum home. He was 94 years old.
Bennett created over 1,000 paintings and prints. His work was exhibited throughout the world and he garnered many honors for his art, including first place in Graphics from the Academic Artists Association for the lithograph "The Watering Place." Bennett was included in "Who's Who in American Art," "Here We Have Idaho," "One Hundred Years of Idaho Art" and "Who's Who in the West."
Bennett's work can still be seen at the Sun Valley Lodge and in numerous Wood River Valley homes. He had many series of paintings, including Treasure of the West, as well as Christmas cards, greeting cards, wildflowers and mountains.
As a seminal artist of Idaho, he captured the state's vibrant outdoor life, which he loved as much as he loved his family and painting. Dirt-road travels, life on the Snake River, a river trip on the Middle Fork, skiing in Sun Valley or enjoying the environs of Redfish Lake, Bemco's adventures in Idaho have all been captured in watercolors, lithographs and oil paintings.
"Anyone he met was blown away by him," said Bennett's daughter Trudi McGonigal. "And, he would keep in touch with everyone."
McGonigal said her father loved Ketchum and said there was no place better. He skied, hiked, worked on trail crews and loved the outdoors, which is significant in all his art.
"What people remember most about him was his character and his incredible sense of humor," said Bennett's daughter Kristy Turco. "He was quite the storyteller."
A celebration of life for Don "Bemco" Bennett will take place at Cathedral Pines, 14 miles north of Ketchum off state Highway 75 on Saturday, June 26, at 2 p.m.
Sabina Dana Plasse: splasse@mtexpress.com
Watercolor print “Snow Time in Sun Valley” by Don “Bemco” Bennett.
