Billy Foster Exhibitions & Legacy Preservation

Preserving American Art. Sharing It With West Virginia.

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Preserving the Legacy of Billy Foster

Billy Foster was a self-taught West Virginia artist whose work reflected Appalachian life, prison survival, coal mining culture, wildlife, and rural memory. Through deeply personal drawings and paintings, Foster documented experiences often overlooked in traditional American art history.

Today, his work is increasingly recognized as an important part of Appalachian outsider art and West Virginia cultural heritage. Through exhibitions, community programming, and documentary projects, Jose L. Rizo has worked alongside collector Benny Dunfee to help preserve and share Foster’s story with wider audiences.

Who is Billy Foster?

Billy Foster was born in Fayette County, West Virginia, and spent much of his life shaped by hardship and incarceration. Public accounts state that he spent nearly 28 years in prison, including time at Moundsville Penitentiary, where he continued developing his artistic voice.

Over the course of his life, Foster created thousands of works, primarily pen-and-ink drawings and oil paintings. His artwork explored themes of Appalachian identity, labor, survival, memory, religion, and the realities of prison life.

His work stands out for its emotional honesty and raw storytelling. Today, many view Foster as an important Appalachian outsider artist whose work preserves a deeply personal perspective on West Virginia history and culture.

Benny Dunfee’s Preservation Effort

Collector Benny Dunfee played a major role in preserving Billy Foster’s artwork over several decades. According to public reporting, Benny befriended Foster during the late 1980s or early 1990s and spent years collecting, protecting, and preserving his work.

Their friendship became the foundation for a long-term effort focused on ensuring Foster’s art and story would survive beyond his lifetime. Public coverage notes that Foster once asked Benny to make sure he would “always be remembered,” giving the preservation effort a deeply personal meaning.

Jose Rizo’s Collaboration and Curatorial Role

Jose L. Rizo became involved through a shared passion for Appalachian storytelling, cultural preservation, and outsider art. Working alongside Benny Dunfee, Jose helped bring Billy Foster’s work into public gallery spaces across West Virginia.

Rather than functioning strictly as a private collector, Jose served as a collaborator, curator, advocate, and organizer focused on helping broader audiences experience Foster’s work and legacy. Public media coverage identified Jose as curator or guest curator for multiple Billy Foster exhibitions and related programming.

His involvement helped transform a decades-long private preservation effort into a larger public arts initiative centered on Appalachian history, storytelling, and regional identity.

Public Exhibitions Across West Virginia

In 2024, The Outlaw: Works by Billy Foster opened at the Parkersburg Art Center. Public reporting described the exhibition as the first major public showing of Benny Dunfee’s long-held Billy Foster works.

Jose Rizo served as curator and helped organize the exhibition alongside Benny and his family. Media coverage highlighted Jose’s belief that Foster’s work deserved greater recognition as an important contribution to Appalachian art. Benny also publicly credited Jose with helping prepare and organize the exhibition after months of planning.

Additional Billy Foster exhibitions and legacy events later followed throughout West Virginia, including:

Together, these exhibitions helped introduce Foster’s work to new audiences while strengthening public awareness of Appalachian outsider art and West Virginia cultural history.

Documentary and Legacy Programming

The Billy Foster preservation effort later expanded into documentary filmmaking and public storytelling projects. Event listings for A Promise Kept: The Friendship of Outlaw Artist Billy Foster and Benny Dunfee identified Jose Rizo as producer alongside director Matt Bickey and collector Benny Dunfee.

The documentary explored Foster’s life, creativity, incarceration, friendship with Benny, and the long effort to preserve his artwork and memory. Through exhibitions, film, and public programming, the project evolved into a broader cultural initiative dedicated to preserving overlooked Appalachian voices through art and storytelling.

Continuing Appalachian Cultural Preservation

Jose Rizo continues to support projects focused on Appalachian art, regional storytelling, and cultural preservation throughout West Virginia.

His collaboration with Benny Dunfee on Billy Foster exhibitions represents a broader commitment to preserving historically important artists whose stories may otherwise remain unseen. Through curatorial work, exhibitions, and documentary projects, these efforts continue helping audiences connect with the history, resilience, and identity embedded within Appalachian art.