HANOVER, NH — Painter and teacher Ben Frank Moss died in his sleep on Friday, August 9th. He was 83.

Born in Philadelphia on February 28, 1936 to Benjamin Franklin Moss, Jr. and Helen Figge Moss, Ben was raised in Devon, Pennsylvania and Huntington, New York. He attended high school at the Stony Brook School on Long Island, received his BA from Whitworth college in Spokane, WA, and his MFA in painting from Boston University. Ben and his wife Jean moved back to Spokane in 1962, where he painted and began teaching painting and drawing as an adjunct instructor at Gonzaga University. From there, Ben went on to become the director of the MFA and Visiting Critics program at Fort Wright College in Spokane, and was later a founding member and acting dean of The Spokane Studio School. From 1975 until 1988 Ben taught in the MFA program at the University of Iowa, and from 1988 until he retired in 2010 he taught at Dartmouth College as the George Fredrick Jewett Professor of Studio Art. His art work was shown widely throughout the United States and internationally – he had over 60 solo exhibitions, was included in more than 360 group shows, and received numerous honors for his painting and drawing. During his career he was represented by Francine Seders Gallery in Seattle, Kraushaar Gallery in New York, Pepper Gallery in Boston, Susan Conway Gallery in Washington, DC, and is currently represented by Big Town Gallery in Rochester, VT. In 1994 he was inducted into the National Academy of Design in New York.

Much of Ben’s work was influenced by the landscape of the Pacific Northwest. With the help of many friends and family members, Ben built a house and studio space in the mountains north of Spokane and painted there every summer from 1976 until 2017.

Ben’s devotion to his family, friends, and students was legendary, as was his humor, generosity, storytelling, intensity of feeling, and strong sense of mission when it came to his painting, drawing, and teaching. He is survived by his wife, Jean; his daughter, Jennifer Moss; his son, Benjamin Moss; his daughter-in-law, Te-Wen Lo; and his sister, L. Millicent Miller.

A memorial service will be held at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Norwich, VT on Saturday, September 14th at 2:00 PM.

To leave a message of condolence please visit the online guestbook at www.rickerfuneralhome.com.