The Enduring Art of Don Biehn
Blending textures, colors and natural light, Don Biehn connects viewers to sights and sensations within their own memories.
Biehn was fascinated by the simple beauty that surrounds us every day. He embraced plein air painting—immersing himself in his subjects’ bursting spring pastels, radiant summer greens, shifting autumn reds and golds, and glistening winter blankets of white.
His oils in particular offer contrasting impressions of commonplace settings where nature meets industry. Thriving arboreal woods envelop an abandoned riverfront mill. Sunkissed waterways sparkle amid a backdrop of billowing smokestacks. And plush greenery surrounds a yard of idled railway cars.
A Lifetime of Drawing
Born February 22, 1942, in Beloit, Wisconsin, Don Biehn grew up in La Crosse along the eastern shores of the Mississippi River. He spent much of his youth exploring the hills, valleys, lakes and riverbanks of the Driftless Area in southwest Wisconsin, whose empty roads, quiet corners and long shadows are echoed his art.
Don trained at Ringling College of Art in Sarasota, Florida. Following that, he flourished as an independent commercial artist in Milwaukee, then San Francisco through the late 1960s and early 1970s. In the mid-1970s, he was drawn to the river town of St. Paul, Minnesota, where he launched a successful, award-winning graphic art studio that grew and thrived through the 1980s.
Don was rarely without his personal sketch book. Outside of his commercial work, he continued to pursue his passion for painting, participating in studio drawing groups, art crawls, corporate exhibits and gallery shows.
Upon retiring from commercial design in 2001, Don dedicated himself to painting fulltime until his death in June 2022. A gifted natural artist, his legacy is a significant library of plein air oil paintings, watercolors, and figure drawings, providing unique perspectives on places and people across his upper-Midwestern home and highlighting his travels across the U.S. and the world.
Inspired by Nature
Don Biehn lived most of his life near native rivers, lakes and marshlands, and was compelled to reflect their allure through his art.
He was most in his element when outdoors—captivated by both the enduring vitality of rural landscapes and the harmony of urban settings where man and nature coexist.
Don also loved to travel, often packing his pochade box with brushes and oils to visit destinations across the U.S. and internationally. Everywhere he went, he found himself drawn to intimate spaces and driven to create on canvas the effects and moods of the environment, the season and the scenery.
Education, Affiliations and Accolades
Education and Affiliations
Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota, FL
Plein Air Workshops & Studio Groups
American Impressionist Society, Signature Member
Oil Painters of America, Signature Member
American Society of Marine Artists, Signature Member
Juried Shows (partial list)
American Impressionist Society
Oil Painters of America
Allied Artist of America, Salmagundi Club, New York, NY
Carmel Plein Air Art Festival, Carmel, CA
Minnesota State Fair Watercolor & Oil Painting
Emerald Arts Center, National Juried Show, Springfield, OR
Elk River Area Arts Alliance, Arts in Harmony, Elk River, MN
National Oil & Acrylic Juried Exhibition
Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Art Perchance, Minneapolis, MN
Southworks National Art Exhibition, Watkinsville, GA
Scottsdale Artist School, The Best & The Brightest Art Show, Scottsdale, AZ
The Municipal Art League of Chicago, Midwest Fine Art Competition
Hudson Valley Arts Association, National Arts Club, NY
Pasadena Art League, Watercolor Show, Pasadena, TX
New England Watercolor Society, Boston MN
Northstar Watercolor Society, Minneapolis-St Paul, MN
Awards (partial list)
Show Silver Medal, Allied Artists of America, Salmagundi Club NYC
Silver Medal, Emerald Art Center Award
Presidents Choice Award of Excellence, American Impressionist Society
Award of Excellence, Oil Painters of America
Honorable Mention, Carmel Plein Air Art Festival
Best River Painting, Elk River Area Arts Alliance, Arts in Harmony
Honorable Mention, Minnesota State Fair
Honorable Mention, Ridgewood Art Institute, Ridgewood, NJ
Salon Show Best Representation, Oil Painters of America
National Top 100, Paint America
Award of Excellence, Minnesota Artist Association
Northstar Watercolor Society, 2nd Place
Gallery Exhibits
2009-Present Grand Hand Gallery, St. Paul MN
2007 Vern Carver Beard Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
2005-2004 Gallery Carla, San Francisco, CA
2005 Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Minneapolis, MN
2004 Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Minneapolis, MN
2003-2002 Powell St. Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2003 Lutheran Brotherhood Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
2002 Vern Carver Beard Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
1993 Lutheran Brotherhood Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
1992 Tamarack Gallery, Stillwater, MN
Solo Exhibits
2022 Grand Hand Gallery, Plein Air Feature, St. Paul, MN
2016 Grand Hand Gallery, St. Paul, MN
2013 Grand Hand Gallery, St. Paul, MN
2007 Vern Carver Beard Gallery, “Artist’s View of the Twin Cities,” Minneapolis, MN
2006 St. Paul Pioneer Press Gallery, St Paul, MN
2005 Vern Carver Beard Gallery, “Connecting the Banks-Over & Across the Mississippi,” Minneapolis, MN
1993 Phipps Center for the Arts, Hudson, WI
Click here for a complete list of Don’s juried shows & awards