Art exhibit honors late painter Betty Hurst

If you’ve lived in Dryden or Freeville for a while, chances are you knew or at least knew of Betty Hurst.

“Everybody knew Betty,” Gina Prentiss from the Dryden Town Historical Society explained.

Hurst was a longtime Freeville and Dryden resident who had a passion for art, a passion that left an impact on the community even after her death in June 2020. And that’s why the Historical Society decided to put her artwork on display, with an exhibit at its headquarters at 14 North St. filled with her sketches and paintings.

“After Betty passed recently, this Board of the Historical Society all said, ‘Everybody has a Betty Hurst painting. Why don’t we do a show and see if we can get paintings on loan from other people?’” Prentiss said. “So, that was the impetus of doing it.”

A reception for the exhibit’s opening was held June 21, and the art will be on display through the end of the year.

Hurst attended Dryden Central School, where she later worked from 1968 until retirement in 1991, as she described in an autobiography available at the Historical Society. Hurst married her high school sweetheart, Philip (Flip) Hurst, and moved to Freeville, where she raised her four children — Gail, Pam, Susan and Lisa.

Betty had a passion for art from a very young age, and Flip helped her to turn that dream into reality.

“One year, we went on a trip out west,” Betty described in her autobiography. “While in a particular campground, we visited a nifty craft shop. I was enthralled with the large assortment of art supplies they were selling. I mentioned (for the 100th time) how much I would enjoy painting. I think Flip was tired of hearing this ‘whining’ and told me only once to go ahead and buy what was needed to pursue my dream. The rest is history.”

From there, Betty continued to hone her skills at home. To hear her children describe it, there was never a dull moment in the Hurst house.

“Dad used to say he never knew what he was going to come home to because we had a two-story home, and she might get sick and tired of seeing a wall, so she’d knock it down,” said Gail (Hurst) Hall. “And there would be glass or dust, … and oh my gosh, it was a mess. But she had a vision and she would follow through on it. Of course, we all had to stop what we were doing to help her, but that’s OK.”

Flip supported her every step of the way, as Pam (Hurst) Tingley explained.

“Mom and Dad both did that work together,” she said. “Dad would make the framework out of barn board. So, he would do the framing, and mom would do the painting. But when we lived in Freeville on 17 Main St., we had a large, long living room, and she did a mural from ceiling to floor with the mountains and the water.”

Betty went through a series of styles with her paintings, beginning with a style reminiscent of Anna Mary Robertson Moses, known by her nickname, Grandma Moses. Later, lessons in Massachusetts and Florida helped her improve her style, and she soon specialized in painting nature scenes, animals and structures, many of which were houses and street views of locations throughout Dryden.

Hall said that folks commissioned Betty to do all sorts of pieces, which were later on display in Groton, Ithaca, Dryden and Cortland. And it wasn’t just paintings; Hurst enjoyed many forms of art, including stained glass, embroidery and sewing.

“My husband was in the Air Force; she made an Air Force pillow for him,” Tingley said. “And she made me a pillow with flowers on the front and pillows for, I think, all grandchildren.”

Prentiss said that the Dryden Town Historical Society Board “toyed with the idea” of making the exhibit include a wider variety of pieces to show off Betty’s versatility but later decided against it.

“I’m so glad that we did it [the way we did] because I think that the paintings were really Betty,” Prentiss said. “That’s what people know Betty [by]. And I think that there is a broad variety of them. And what I love is the sketchbooks and how free they are, and how some of the ones that were painted for houses and things like that are much different.”

And the exhibit has already been well-appreciated by the community. Over 50 people attended the opening reception, and the air was filled with countless stories of Betty.

“There were many really fascinating stories,” Lisa (Hurst) Stelick said. “One woman was telling us how she had commissioned mom to do paintings on saws. And I’d forgotten that until she mentioned that. She did a lot of paintings on those long saws.”

Prentiss hopes that the exhibit will continue to attract residents interested in learning more about Betty and her art. For now, Betty’s legacy will continue to live on, not only through her artwork but also through her children. Betty passed on her passion for art, and Hall was the one who took most to it.

“She used to get after me and say, ‘Gail, you need to practice more,’” Hall said. “I didn’t have time, working full time as a nurse and traveling back and forth and raising a large family. … Now that I’m retired, I have time, so I am dabbling more in the acrylics, and the oils, not so much. But I’ve always been kind of crafty. And I gave her a piece two or three years ago. She said, ‘You really did this?’ I said, ‘Yes, I did.’ She says, ‘It’s really good.’”

And all the sisters took to music — Stelick with singing and trumpet, Susan Hurst with trumpet, and Hall and Tingley with piano.

Those interested in learning more about Betty Hurst are encouraged to visit the exhibit at the Dryden Town Historical Society at 14 North St. in Dryden. Hours are Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Make an appointment by calling (607) 844-9209 or emailing drydennyhistory@gmail.com.