William D. Berry or Bill Berry (May 20, 1926–1979) was an influential Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

n artist known for his wildlife

Wildlife

Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....

 sketch

Sketch (drawing)

A sketch is a rapidly executed freehand drawing that is not usually intended as a finished work...

es, cartoon

Cartoon

A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...

s, and painting

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...

s.

Life and work

He was born May 20, 1926 in San Mateo, California

San Mateo, California

San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of approximately 100,000 , it is one of the larger suburbs on the San Francisco Peninsula, located between Burlingame to the north, Foster City to the east, Belmont to the south,...

. He met and married Liz, and they had two sons, Mark (b. 1959) and Paul (b. 1962). The family moved to Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...

 in 1965.

One of his last works was a mural

Mural

A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...

 for the children's room in the Noel Wien Public Library

Noel Wien Public Library

The Noel Wien Public Library, operated by the Fairbanks North Star Borough, is located in Fairbanks, Alaska. It has a branch library in North Pole, Alaska. Its current director is Greg Hill, who also writes a regular column for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. The library has more than 100,000...

 in Fairbanks. He was shot and killed before he was able to complete the mural. His mural, "An Alaskan Fairytale", was completed by illustrator and Caldecott Medal

Caldecott Medal

The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...

 winner Trina Schart Hyman

Trina Schart Hyman

Trina Schart Hyman was an American illustrator of children's books. She illustrated over 150 books, including fairy tales and Arthurian legends, and was the recipient of three Caldecott Honors and one Caldecott Medal....

.

Sources