by The Brandywine Museum of Art in Chadds Ford, PA showcases the works of American illustrator and artist N.C. Wyeth, his son Andrew Wyeth, and Andrew’s son Jamie Wyeth, along with other talented family members and regional artists. There are so many Wyeth items, the museum is often referred to as the Wyeth Museum.
N.C. Wyeth (1882-1945) was one of America’s most well-known illustrators; he was a pupil of Howard Pyle, whose work we had just toured at the nearby Delaware Art Museum. He created more than 3,000 paintings and illustrated 112 books. Many of his illustrations are on display in the museum, including his famed Treasure Island work from 1911. As part of our visit, we were able to tour both his home and studio, built on 18 acres overlooking the valley; he lived here with his wife and five children, many of whom were artists in their own right.
A picture of part of his studio is featured above; the painting front left is what he was working on when he died suddenly, and the movable staircase pictured allowed him to work on really large pieces of art.
One of N.C. Wyeth’s children, Andrew (1917-2009) was sickly throughout his childhood; he was schooled at home and flourished as a painter under his father’s tutelage, going on to become one of the best known U.S. artists of the 20th century.
Some of his favorite subjects were the landscapes and people he knew, often choosing subjects from his hometown of Chadds Ford and his summer home in Maine.
You’ve surely seen Wyeth’s famous painting, Christina’s World, which is currently on display in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City; it features a Maine farm and a family friend.
We also toured Andrew’s home-turned-studio, where he worked until 2008; his son Jamie painted there, too, in another room.
Andrew’s son Jamie, born in 1946, would also go on to be a successful artist. He also grew up in Chadds Ford, and was instructed in art by his aunt Carolyn (Andrew’s sister), along with his father. The nearby Kuerner Farm was a major source of inspiration for Andrew (it appears in 1,000 of his works); it can also be toured, but has a very limited schedule and was not an option on the day we visited.
The exhibition during our visit was Andrew Wyeth: Home Places, which featured many draft drawings, some side-by-side with the final product; many of the items had never before been displayed.
Interestingly, Jamie was a friend of Andy Warhol; the two exchanged portraits, and we saw Warhol’s portrait of Wyeth in the Andy Warhol Museum on our recent visit.
3 thoughts on “Brandywine Museum of Art and the Wyeth Family of Painters”