This Project is sponsored by World Heritage USA at the Office of Historic Preservation (OHP), San Antonio, TX.
This Project is part of the "Local Market Program" designed by OHP.
Brother Cletus
His artworks stand out for their vibrant world and dedication to illustrating San Antonio's tangible and intangible heritage, particularly the Missions that were selected as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2015.
-He died in 2016-
Robert Rose, Product Designer
Paul Garro
Former President of Central Catholic High School
"Behlmann was always full of life, energy, and joy. That’s why his art was always colorful; that was his personal gift.”
"A quiet, hardworking, friendly man who loves his job and has helped change the lives of countless South Texans."
Thomas M. Mengler, President of Saint Mary's University
"God Bless Brother Cletus for the many ways in which men and women experienced God's grace, joy and sense of humor through his art."
1933.
He was born Nov. 3, 1933, in St. Louis, Missouri, the 11th of 12 children in the family of John and Mary (Gettemeier) Behlmann. He attended McBride High School, where he was taught by the Marianist brothers.
1953.
He entered the Marianists, He took his first vows on Aug. 15, 1953, and his perpetual vows on July 13, 1958, at Our Lady of the Pillar Church in Clayton, Missouri.
1956.
He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English from St. Mary’s University in 1956 when he was 23 years old.
His first opportunity to study art came at age 28 when he studied at the Chicago Institute of Art and Washington University in St. Louis (Marini, 2023).
1966.
Behlmann was teaching at Saint Joseph School in Victoria, Saint Joseph School in El Paso, and Maryhurst School/Saint John Vianney High School near Saint Louis. He taught art at St. John Vianney High School in Kirkwood from 1966 to 1977. It was there he turned a chicken house into the Rooster Gallery to help educate Vianney's art students. He taught for 19 years before arriving in San Antonio to become a full-time artist. He then returned to Texas, where he was able to dedicate himself full-time to creating art, establishing the St. Mary’s University Art Center.
1977.
He settled in San Antonio in 1977 and began operating the St. Mary's University Art Center. Since then, he has become widely known for his colorful, expressive paintings of landscapes, missions, people, and more. For nearly 40 years he was a celebrated and prolific artist-in-residence at the Marianist University.
1989.
based on the paper published by the University of Dayton, Marian Library in 1989, Brother Cletus used to be chairman of St. Mary's Fine Arts Committee. He runs the Art Center, gives demonstrations, and teaches art.
2016.
Brother Cletus Behlmann died in 2016 in San Antonio at age 82.
Funeral services were held on Monday, July 18, at Holy Rosary Catholic Church. It was his wish to be cremated and have the ashes interred at Maryhurst Cemetery in St. Louis. He will never be far from their memory, thanks to each unmistakably colorful “Cletus” displayed in schools, offices, hospitals, chapels, and homes around the country. “God Bless Brother Cletus for the many ways in which men and women experienced God’s grace, joy, and sense of humor through his art,” said St. Mary’s University President Thomas Mengler, J.D.(editor, 2016).
One of his first assignments was to do a charcoal drawing of a bean pot, which didn’t go well. “I had the worst time,” he said, according to his University of Dayton bio.
His art came in metal, acrylics, watercolor, batik, pastels, stained glass, ceramics, handmade paper, linoleum prints, crayons, and occasionally oils and painted on virtually any surface, including canvas, handmade paper, wooden boards, and fabric. other media. Skilled as a carpenter, he also crafted and decorated altars, tables, chairs, and other furniture as well as sculptures, both figurative and abstract. He’s been called “shockingly productive,” and his ubiquitous works around the city stand as evidence. There was hardly a medium in which Behlmann didn’t work.
His artwork can be found throughout Marianist communities and in galleries, homes, public buildings, and private collections across the United States.
He has been called "shockingly productive"
Over the years he did literally hundreds of paintings, metal sculptures, and ceramic pieces.
"Set within two humble old portables acquired from a local school district, Brother Cletus Behlmann has converted these modest surroundings into a place of artistic peace and prayerful discovery."
He even built and decorated his own casket.
A small autobiography he wrote lists two dozen charities that raised funds by selling his works, from the American Heart Association and the San Antonio Food Bank to the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
Behlmann “was always full of life, energy, and joy. That’s why his art was always colorful; that was his personal gift.”
In fact, the concept of his work is a “celebration of life,” which was made all around the United States, as well as Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taipei, Bangkok, Europe, and Central America.
 Germany,Rothenburg ob der Tauber |  China,BeijingDescribe your image |  Scotland,EdinburghDescribe your image |  Mont Saint-Michel,Commune in FranceDescribe your image |
|---|---|---|---|
 France,AmiensDescribe your image |  Greece,MykonosDescribe your image |
His work, often depicting secular images such as birds and flowers, as well as religious themes, became popular outside of the Marianist world, with paintings selling for a thousand dollars. While it is fairly common to have the price of an artist’s work experience a slight bump after death, what is happening with Brother Cletus’ work is “wildly unusual,” according to Natalie Grant, a fine art specialist at Vogt Auction Galleries in San Antonio, TX. She reports that paintings that sold in the low $1,000s just six months ago are now selling for $4,000 or more(Marini, 2023).
