William A. Berry

Reclining Female Nude with Flowered Sheet a la Matisse (Leg Down)

c. 1980

William A. Berry (American, 1933-2010) was an accomplished artist and renowned illustrator who left thousands of drawings, paintings, photographs, and mixed media works, a multitude of published illustrations, and a legacy as an art educator. His seminal textbook, Drawing the Human Form, remains a staple in studio classrooms. Berry was born in Jacksonville, Texas. He studied at the University of Texas – Austin, where he earned his BFA in 1955, followed by the University of Southern California, where he completed his MFA in 1957. After a two year period of military service in Germany, he embarked on his career as an artist and illustrator in New York City. His work appeared in such publications as Newsweek, The Reporter, Esquire, Harpers Magazine, The NewYork Times, and Sports Illustrated. An art professorship brought him in 1978 to Columbia, Missouri, where he lived for the rest of his life. He retired from the University of Missouri in 1999 as a Curators’ Professor of Art Emeritus.