Charles Dewey’s creative life started early when, as a boy, he made toys for himself. In his adult life he designed houses and furniture. Growing up in Bennington, he attended public schools and took only one woodworking class. In 1964, Dewey received a degree in Landscape Architecture from Michigan State University. Presented with a choice of living and working in an urban area as a successful Landscape Architect or living in his beloved Vermont and traveling, Dewey turned to his principle hobby - furniture making and restoration. This option allowed him to stay in Bennington where his family had lived since 1763, and still work at something he took pleasure in.

Interested in painting most of his life, Dewey considers himself to be a recreational painter. Like his furniture making, he is self taught. Most of his works have been created in recent years, when he painted objects and places that he enjoys.