In 1997, Erik was a 20-year-old Alaskan who experienced Down Syndrome and autism.   He attended Kenny Lake School in rural Alaska near Wrangell-- Saint Elias National Park.  What happened that year not only changed his life, but also his family’s life.

He was born when his parents, Steve and Linda, were trapping in the Lake Clark area of Alaska.  His first years were spent wrapped in a heavy sleeping bag, strapped in a wooden box on the top of a dog sled piled with all the family’s worldly goods.  Life was hard for all, and by the time he was 3, they moved into the fishing town of Dillingham, Alaska, on the Bristol Bay coast, where his dad got a job, and they could buy food in a store instead of harvesting it in the wilderness.

Years later, his mom and dad split up, forcing his mom to return to life as a “bush teacher” in rural Alaska.  Thus, Erik and his younger brother Christopher grew up moving from school to school around the state.  He saw grizzly bears on the peninsula, caribou, trumpeter swans, ducks, moose, salmon, beluga, and killer whales, plus many other animals in the wild as his mother tried to draw his attention to the natural beauty of Alaska's wilderness.

Most of his childhood was spent in the southwest bush of Alaska, with infrequent plane trips to town (Anchorage) to buy supplies.  Colors, coloring books, drawing paper, tracing paper, markers, paints, chalks were always purchased for him by his family since he loved to spend hours in artistic endeavors.  No one realized he was teaching himself to draw in the hours he spent each day looking at other art, books and the world he lived in.

His mother suspected he had an artistic gift when he entered high school, but couldn’t prove it as only a mom.  She decided to get her fourth teacher’s certificate and master’s degree in special education about that time.  Having three titles: teacher, legal guardian, and mom, was the only way she could help him find a career he would enjoy.  It took her ten years to accomplish it through night school and summer school at the University of Alaska, Anchorage.  This opened doors (Copper River School District) to going back to rural Alaska to teach, where Erik would be her student, and she could run some experiments with him.  It was perfect since she preferred a small school with multiple grades. This was the chance to see if it was possible to make the dream of him becoming a professional artist come true.

Tests from his old high school showed Erik could do laundry as a profession but he only wanted to work with his art pens.  The blessing was a wonderful, dedicated teacher aide, Linda Rutledge, who helped support both Linda Thompson (mom) and Erik in this endeavor.  They closely teamed up and continually supported the “dream” for him. They put white paper and black ink pens in front of him along with piles of old books from the library with wildlife shots of animals he had seen his entire life.  Progress was shockingly fast.  Soon other artists from the valley were telling them that Erik was a “gifted” artist.  Even though his mom dreamed big for him, it was still hard for her to not remember the 20 years of people saying he was “severely retarded” and that he had no reliable future.  From the time he was born, she had learned to ignore negativity.

New goals were set for the school year.  Erik sold ice cream at lunch to earn money to purchase the best professional art markers and linen paper for his presentation portfolio.  During and after school, he attended his classes, did work experience in a Glennallen grocery store, and worked on art for his portfolio.  By April 1998- 7 months after he drew his first original, The Big Eagle- Erik and mom took his files of paintings to Anchorage galleries in search of a market.  He met Diane Louise of Aurora Fine Art. Tears were soon pouring from his mom’s eyes as the gallery owner announced, “I would like to be the first gallery to introduce Erik Behnke to the world.”  Erik didn’t understand why his mom cried, so he did also, and Diane gave them both a big hug before they all started planning for that summer's art opening. The dream was coming true.

That spring, Mom needed to learn how to legally set up a business that would help market Erik’s art and set up his special needs trust that was to financially benefit him.  It took months to figure out the two.  It was the hope of his mother that the business would not only help Erik but also the careers of other artists with developmental disabilities in the future.

That summer, Erik had art openings in three Alaskan art galleries in Anchorage, Glennallen and in Fairbanks.   They returned to Kenny Lake School for his final senior year, and he continued to work long hours on his portfolio.  Once he graduated from school, Erik and his mom moved to Homer, Alaska, in the summer of 1999, in order for him to continue to be in an artistic and safe environment.  His mom got a job at Homer High teaching intensive needs special education. All the necessary supports for his success were found in Home,r and both were very happy.  He was the artist for the 2001 Special Olympic World Winter Games.  Over the years, he has had art openings in Boston, Manhattan, Long Island, Phoenix, Denver, Washington, DC, Spokane, Portland, Seattle, Kansas City, Anaheim, and others.  It has been a lot of fun to travel to them and share his art.

He moved into a group home in 2018 and worked on art with another artist, Teresa Aldridge.  They enjoyed working together and sold their paintings in Fireweed Gallery and in Brown Bear Products Gallery.  They had their last art show together in the fall of 2022.  It was a big success. 

Erik had 25 year career as an artist in Alaska.  He no longer worked on his art after this period, which is common with artists with Down’s Syndrome.  Most stop at 35 years of age, but Erik was able to work happily until 45.  He is the most successful artist with a severe disability in Alaska and served as a role model for his peers and for parents who also hope to see the possibilities for their children.  He now lives in Kenai, Alaska.