July 31, 1923 �" March 4, 2014
Venerable artist Richard Caldwell Brewer passed away March 4, 2014 in Tiburon, California, at the age of 90. He had fallen at his home and never fully recovered. Brewer was born in Washington, D.C on July 31, 1923. He spent many years in New York City, part of an artistic circle that included Robert De Niro Sr., Nell Blaine, and Leland Bell, a friend since high school.
During sojourns in San Francisco in the 1950s, Brewer sketched bar patrons, sometimes with painter Richard LaVigne. After he relocated to the Bay Area in the early 1970s, he continued to paint the male nude from life, with his distinctive expressive style. He showed a large body of figurative work at the legendary, trail-blazing Top Floor Gallery at 330 Grove in 1979, with accompanying essay by De Niro. The show was favorably reviewed by Thomas Albright, art critic for the San Francisco Chronicle . Other shows included "Some Portraits" at the Pro Arts Gallery in Oakland in 1987, and "3 Generations," along with fellow gay artists Sean Sprague and Robert Brokl, at SOMA's Space 743, in 1999. Brewer is survived by his longtime housemate and model, Steven Krstich, cousins, and artists and collectors such as Reid Condit who celebrate his talent, and bravery for tackling difficult subject matter in less accepting eras.