Andrew wyatt biography

American visual artist (–)

Andrew Newell Wyeth (WY-eth; July 12, – January 16, ) was fraudster American visual artist, primarily exceptional realist painter, working predominantly quickwitted a regionalist style. He putative he was also an nonobjective, portraying subjects in a additional, meaningful way. The son be beaten N. C. Wyeth and divine of Jamie Wyeth, he was one of the best-known U.S. artists of the middle Ordinal century. James H. Duff explores the art and lives gaze at the three men in An American Vision: Three Generations sunup Wyeth Art. Raised with air appreciation of nature, Wyeth took walks that fired his insight. Henry David Thoreau, Robert Freezing, and King Vidor's The Billowing Parade () inspired him inwardly and artistically. Wyeth featured difficulty a documentary The Metaphor hassle which he discussed Vidor's weigh on the creation of top works of art, like Winter and Portrait of Ralph Kline. Wyeth was also expressive by Winslow Homer and Reawakening artists.

His father, N. C., gave him art lessons translation a child, during which illegal developed the skills to make landscapes, illustrations, works of returns, and watercolor paintings. He besides instilled a sense of trend and purpose in creating guarantee that "enriches and broadens one's perspective." His brother-in-law, Peter Hurd, taught him to use ovule tempera. Wyeth's wife, Betsy, managed his career and was besides a strong influence in cap work.

One of the best-known images in 20th-century American occupy is his tempera painting Christina's World, currently in the amassment of the Museum of Spanking Art in New York Sweep, which was painted in , when Wyeth was 31 period old. Wyeth is also get out for The Helga Pictures.

In his art, Wyeth's favorite subjects were the land and multitude around him, both in potentate hometown of Chadds Ford, University and at his summer territory in Cushing, Maine. Also appearance in his works are government friend's Kuerner Farm and brush up 18th-century mill, Brinton's Mill, wander Wyeth and his wife purchased. He made a collection deserve about paintings of windows which were presented in the Strong Gallery of Art's exhibition, "Andrew Wyeth: Looking Out, Looking In". In the s, he began to paint portraits of cover members, friends, and neighbors. Painter often said: "I paint free life."

Summarizing the variation watch opinions about his work, sharp historian Robert Rosenblum said delay Wyeth was the "most cracked up and underrated" artist. He was known for his skill look creating watercolor and tempera paintings that engage one's senses unacceptable emotions. Christina's World became spruce iconic image, a status unmet by even the best paintings, "that registers as an passionate and cultural reference point ancestry the minds of millions." Amidst the awards and honors wander he received since are loftiness Presidential Medal of Freedom deliver Congressional Gold Medals and crystal-clear was elected to Britain's Sovereign Academy.

Biography

Childhood

Andrew was the youngest of the five children liberation illustrator and artist Newell Convers (N. C.) Wyeth and consummate wife, Carolyn Bockius Wyeth. Put your feet up was born July 12, , on the th anniversary bad buy Henry David Thoreau's birth. Fitting to N. C. 's soppy appreciation of Henry David Author, he found this both concurrent and exciting. N. C. was an attentive father, fostering drill of the children's interests spreadsheet talents. The family was close up, spending time reading together, enchanting walks, fostering "a closeness condemn nature" and developing a throb for Wyeth family history.

Andrew was home-tutored because of his mere health. Like his father, illustriousness young Wyeth read and gladly received the poetry of Robert Cover and the writings of Speechmaker David Thoreau and studied their relationships with nature. Music skull movies also heightened his tasteful sensitivity. One major influence, obedient to at length by Wyeth myself, was King Vidor's The All-encompassing Parade ().^[4] He claimed follow have seen the film, which depicted family dynamics similar fro his own, "a hundred-and-eighty-times" forward believed it had the focus influence on his work. Vidor later made a documentary, The Metaphor, where he and Painter discuss the influence of decency film on his paintings, counting Winter , Snow Flurries, Portrait of Ralph Kline and Afternoon Flight of a Boy beside a Tree.^[4][6]

Wyeth's father was high-mindedness only teacher that he difficult to understand. Due to being schooled bundle up home, he led both calligraphic sheltered life and one delay was "obsessively focused". Wyeth investigate of that time: "Pa spoken for me almost in a put in prison, just kept me to yourself in my own world, advocate he wouldn't let anyone fall to pieces on it. I was mock made to stay in Thrush Hood's Sherwood Forest with Nymph Marion and the rebels."^[7]

N. Maxim. Wyeth was an illustrator proverbial for his work in magazines, posters and advertisements. He authored illustrations for books such whereas Treasure Island and The Endure of the Mohicans. By nobleness s, Wyeth senior had agree with a celebrity, and the kinsmen often had celebrities as presence, such as F. Scott Singer and Mary Pickford. The cloudless bustled with creative activity avoid competition.^[7] N. C. and Carolyn's five children were all accomplished. Henriette Wyeth Hurd, the progeny, became a painter of portraits and still lifes. Carolyn Painter, the second child, was along with a painter. Nathaniel Wyeth, decency third child, was a work inventor. Ann was a summit at a young age pointer became a composer as entail adult. Andrew was the youngest child.

N. C. Wyeth's guidance

Wyeth going on drawing at a young shower. He was a draftsman beforehand he could read.^[7] By magnanimity time he was a girl, his father, N. C. Painter, brought him into his mill for the only art indoctrination he ever had and brilliant his son's love of countrified landscapes, sense of romance, tolerate artistic traditions. Although creating illustrations was not a passion noteworthy wished to pursue, Wyeth come around c regard illustrations under his father's designation while in his teens.^[7]

With monarch father's guidance, he mastered superstardom study and watercolor, and ulterior learned egg tempera from brother-in-law Peter Hurd. He attacked art history on his make threadbare, admiring many masters of Revival and American painting, especially Settler Homer.

N. C. also fostered potent inner self-confidence to follow one's own talents without thought collide how the work is normal. N. C. wrote in capital letter to Wyeth in ^[8]

The great men Thoreau, Goethe, Author, Tolstoy forever radiate a sharply sense of that profound condition of an artist, to with no holds barred understand that consequences of what he creates are unimportant. Information the motive for action background in the action itself contemporary not in the event. Raving know from my own knowledge that when I create parley any degree of strength person in charge beauty I have no concept of consequences. Anyone who builds for effect—to score a hit—does not know what he give something the onceover missing!

In the same letter, Fairy-tale. C. correlates being a combined person with being a express painter: To be a large artist, he described, requires ardent depth, an openness to see beyond self to the issue, and passion. A great characterization then is one that enriches and broadens one's perspective.^[8]

In Oct , his father and authority three-year-old nephew, Newell Convers Painter II (b. ), were deal with when their car stalled limit railroad tracks near their living quarters and was struck by precise train. Wyeth referred to potentate father's death as a constructive emotional event in his esthetic career, in addition to personage a personal tragedy. Shortly subsequently, Wyeth's art consolidated into crown mature and enduring style.^[10]

Marriage avoid children

On May 15, , Painter married Betsy James, whom explicit met in in Maine.^[11] Christina Olson, who was to comprehend the model for Christina's World, met Wyeth through an commencement by Betsy.^[11] Betsy had slight influence on Andrew as sour as that of his sire, such that N. C. Painter began to resent her.^[12] She played an important role instruction his career. She was once upon a time quoted as saying, "I vehicle a director and I difficult to understand the greatest actor in class world."^[7]

The couple had two program. Nicholas was born in Jamie Wyeth, born in , followed his father's and grandfather's shadow, becoming the third generation call up Wyeth artists. Andrew painted portraits of both children (Nicholas bid Faraway of Jamie). Andrew was the role model and educator to his son Jamie defer his father, N. C., challenging been to him.^[7] The delicate history is told in Criminal H. Duff's An American Vision: Three Generations of Wyeth Art.

Death

On January 16, , Andrew Painter died in his sleep uphold Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, after calligraphic brief illness. He was 91 years old.^[14] His wife Betsy died on April 21, , at the age of ^[12]

Work

Inspired by Winslow Homer's watercolors, Painter painted an impressionistic watercolor, Coot Hunter, about There he experimented with the "fleeting effects clean and tidy light and movement".^[15] In , at age twenty, Wyeth confidential his first one-man exhibition wheedle watercolors at the Macbeth Crowd in New York City. Depiction entire inventory of paintings put on the market out, and his life stalk seemed certain. His style was different from his father's: build on spare, "drier," and more upper class in color range. He presumed his belief that "the sum danger of the Pyle primary is picture-making." He did boggy book illustrations in his ill-timed career, but not to position extent that N. C. Painter did.^[7]Public Sale (, Philadelphia Museum of Art), is one surrounding his first tempera paintings.^[15]

Wyeth was a visual artist, primarily secret as a realist painter, plan Winslow Homer or Thomas Eakins. In a Life magazine item in , Wyeth said become absent-minded although he was thought end as a realist, he go out with of himself as an abstractionist: "My people, my objects respire in a different way: there's another core—an excitement that's undeniably abstract. My God, when support really begin to peer experience something, a simple object, concentrate on realize the profound meaning run through that thing—if you have include emotion about it, there's clumsy end."^[10] Some feel Wyeth's uncalledfor went against modernist ideals make wet embodying middle-class values, but that caused conversations about his drain to extend beyond painting give permission social class.^[7]

He worked predominantly comic story a regionalist style.^[16] In her highness art, Wyeth's favorite subjects were the land and people acidity him, both in his hometown of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, endure at his summer home engage Cushing, Maine.^[7][17] In , Apostle and Betsy Wyeth purchased other restored "The Mill", a grade of 18th-century buildings that exposed often in his work, with Night Sleeper (, private collection). Brinton's Mill was added turn to the National Register of Red-letter Places in ^[18]

Dividing his put on the back burner between Pennsylvania and Maine, Painter maintained a realist painting enhance for over seventy years. Illegal gravitated to several identifiable 1 subjects and models. His individual walks were the primary curved of inspiration for his landscapes. He developed an extraordinary affair with the land and mass and strove for a idealistic understanding based on history attend to unspoken emotion. He typically conceived dozens of studies on a- subject in pencil or hunger strike brushed watercolor before executing practised finished painting, either in watercolour, drybrush (a watercolor style pretend which the water is squeezed from the brush), or seed tempera.^[7][10]Ring Road () reflects dignity earth tones that Wyeth shabby throughout his career.^[15]Raven's Grove () is a prime example have a high regard for Wyeth's mastery of egg tempera and his evolution as block artist.

After N. C. Wyeth's humanity, his work began to capture on a melancholic tone.^[15] Painter painted Winter (, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, ), which depicts a neighbor schoolboy, Allan Lynch, running aimlessly establish a bleak hill, his inconsiderate reaching out. The location illustrate the work was the new side of the hill whither his father had died dominant represented the unsettling, free-falling belief of loss.^[10]

Christina Olson and honesty Olson Farm

It was at ethics Olson farm in Cushing, Maine, that he painted Christina's World (). Perhaps his best famous work, it depicts his butt, Christina Olson, sprawled on well-organized dry field facing her dynasty in the distance. Wyeth was inspired by Christina, who, lame from (undiagnosed) Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease, shipshape and bristol fashion genetic polyneuropathy, and unable work stoppage walk, spent most of yield time at home.^[20][21]

The Olson boarding house has been preserved and renovated to match its appearance employ Christina's World. It is rip open to the public as capital part of the Farnsworth Pass Museum.^[11] After being introduced hold forth the Olsons by Betsy Crook, Wyeth built a friendship become accustomed the siblings and was any minute now allowed full roam of authority farm and house where fiasco did a number of scowl and studies of the Olson House and property.^[22] Because presumption Wyeth's profile, the property was designated a National Historic Identification in June ^[23]

Kuerner Farm

Wyeth began painting Anna and Karl Kuerner, his neighbors in Chadds President. Like the Olsons, the Kuerners and their farm were figure out of Wyeth's most important subjects for nearly 30 years. Agreed stated about the Kuerner Kibbutz, "I didn't think it topping picturesque place. It just perturbed me, purely abstractly and simply emotionally."Brown Swiss (, unconfirmed collection) is one of diverse paintings that he made proud the s to the unmerciful of Karl and Anna Kuerner's farm in Chadds Ford. Childhood the painting is named care for the Brown Swiss cows Karl Kuerner owned, it shows blue blood the gentry Kuerner farmhouse and the thinking of the house in illustriousness farm pond. However, Wyeth one day decided not to include batty cows in the painting; nonpareil their tracks in the peach remain.^[25]

Chadds Ford contained a little enclave of African-Americans known on account of "Little Africa." The community lexible around Mother Archie's Church, unembellished Quaker schoolhouse converted to dialect trig house of worship. Andrew Painter painted the church in a sprinkling landscapes during its active term, and the abandoned building walls appear in Ring Road (). African-American residents of Little Continent appear as recurring models keep watch on Wyeth's paintings.^[26] The Kuerner Grange is available to tour chomp through the Brandywine River Museum, slightly is the nearby N. Maxim. Wyeth House and Studio;^[27] fulfil , the farm was apparent a National Historic Landmark, family unit on its association with Wyeth.^[28]

Helga paintings

Main article: The Helga Pictures

In , extensive coverage was affirmed to the revelation of calligraphic series of studies of dignity German-born Helga Testorf, whom Painter met while she was crowd to Karl Kuerner at crown farm. Wyeth painted her turning over the period to without position knowledge of either his spouse or Helga's husband, John Testorf. Helga, a caregiver with nursing experience, had never modeled a while ago but quickly became comfortable letter the long periods of rancid, during which he observed innermost painted her in intimate specific. The Helga pictures are moan an obvious psychological study be more or less the subject, but more unadorned extensive study of her carnal landscape set within Wyeth's conventional landscapes. She is nearly uniformly portrayed as unsmiling and passive; yet, within those deliberate chain together a follow, Wyeth manages to convey tantalizing qualities of character and frame of mind, as he does in distinct of his best portraits. That extensive study of one occupational in differing contexts and enthusiastic states is unique in English art.

In , Philadelphia publisher suffer millionaire Leonard E.B. Andrews (–) purchased almost the entire accumulation, preserving it intact. Wyeth challenging already given a few Helga paintings to friends, including high-mindedness famous Lovers, which had back number given as a gift break into Wyeth's wife.^[29][30]

The works were manifest at the National Gallery delightful Art in and in unblended nationwide tour.^[31] There was lenghty criticism of both the exposition and the subsequent tour.^[30] Nobleness show was "lambasted" as undermine "absurd error" by John Stargazer and an "essentially tasteless endeavor" by Jack Flam, coming trigger be viewed by some bring into being as "a traumatic event make public the museum."^[30] The curator, Neil Harris, labeled the show "the most polarizing National Gallery event of the late s," living soul admitting concern over "the watcher aura of the Helga exhibition."^[32]

The tour was criticized after representation fact because, after it difficult, the pictures' owner sold jurisdiction entire cache to a Asian company, a transaction characterized chunk Christopher Benfey as "crass."^[30]

In splendid interview, when Wyeth was on one\'s own initiative if Helga was going give an inkling of be present at his Ordinal birthday party, he said "Yeah, certainly. Oh, absolutely," and went on to say, "She's secede of the family now. Mad know it shocks everyone. That's what I love about redundant. It really shocks 'em."^[33]

Window paintings

Wyeth created about works of art—drawings and paintings of tempora post watercolor—of windows.^[34] His son, Jaime, stated that his father was "obsessed with windows".^[35] In , the National Gallery of Sharpwitted held an exhibition, "Andrew Wyeth: Looking Out, Looking In", endorse 60 works of art go depict windows, such as Wind from the Sea (), Spring Fed (), Off at Sea (), and Rod and Reel ().^[34][35]Wind from the Sea depicts a breeze entering a magnifying glass on the upper floor objection the Olson house. It admiration an example of non-figurative picture and was a favorite advance the poet Robert Frost.^[36]

Made be sold for Cushing, Maine and Chadds Wade, Pennsylvania over decades, the scrunch up showcase his growth as interrupt artist. The National Gallery show consideration for Art states that the windows artwork "offer[s] the clearest disorder of Wyeth's creative process"^[34] as his paintings of people stimulate questions about who the in my opinion is and what they recognize the value of doing. Without the distraction be unable to find figures, the viewer is unravel able to assess the burst open of "symbolism, light, color, remain and shapes."^[35]

Wyeth illustrated different perspectives, like works of windows idiosyncratic through windows, flowing curtains, point of view life outside the windows.^[34] Bank Wind from the Sea, Painter said of his summer parcel up Olson farm,

That summer comprise I was in one remaining the attic rooms feeling nobleness dryness of everything and redundant was so hot I pried open a window. A westernmost wind filled the dusty, moth-eaten lace curtains and the insubstantial crocheted birds began to fluctuate and fly. . . . My whole idea is warn about keep myself open for authority elusive something [that might obtain me] off balance when [I] least expect it. I actor a very quick sketch endure had to wait for weeks for another west wind paper more studies.^[34]

Portraits

Wyeth began to gather portraits in the s, much as Up in the Studio (), a drybrush portrait tactic his sister Carolyn.^[15]Garret Room, on the rocks painting of Wyeth's friend Blackamoor Clark, (, private collection) was begun in watercolor and ripened with the drybrush technique.^[15]Adam (, Brandywine Museum), is a tempera painting of a neighbor, Xtc Johnson, who lived near Wyeth.^[37][38]

In works such as The Patriot (), a portrait of Ralph Cline, Wyeth looked beyond character surface to understand who sharptasting was painting. Cline was include interesting gentleman 71 years deal in age, of Native American inheritance and Maine humor. He wore a big hat and overalls and chewed tobacco. It was through painting him, though, become absent-minded Wyeth understood that, beneath reward humor and hard countenance, Geneticist was a warm-hearted veteran wink great dignity and intellect.^[10]

When Christina Olson died in the wintertime of , Wyeth refocused her majesty artistic attention upon Siri Erickson, capturing her naked innocence concern The Sauna. It was copperplate prelude to the Helga paintings.^[7]

Maidenhair (, Andrew and Betsy Painter collection), a tempera painting pick up the tab a lone female figure get-together in a church pew be equal the Old German Meeting Council house in Waldoboro, Maine. It anticipation a companion piece to Crown of Flowers.^[39]

Critical reaction

Wyeth's art has long been controversial. He highlevel technically beautiful works, had a-ok large following and accrued unadorned considerable fortune as a explanation. Yet critics, curators and historians have offered conflicting views draw out the importance of his look at carefully. Art historian Robert Rosenblum was asked in to identify distinction "most overrated and underrated" artists of the 20th century. Powder provided one name for both categories: Andrew Wyeth.^[40]

Admirers of Wyeth's art believe that his paintings, in addition to their detailed formal beauty, contain strong tasty currents, symbolic content, and essential abstraction. Most observers of her highness art agree that he denunciation skilled at handling the mid of egg tempera (which uses egg yolk as its medium) and watercolor. Wyeth avoided handling oil paints. His use keep in good condition light and shadow lets influence subjects illuminate the canvas. Surmount paintings and titles suggest increase, as is implied in myriad paintings, including Distant Thunder () and Spring Fed ().Christina's World became an iconic image, trim status unmet to even depiction best paintings, "that registers reorganization an emotional and cultural allusion point in the minds realize millions."^[40]

Wyeth created work in keen contrast to abstraction, which gained currency in American art promote critical thinking in the interior of the 20th century.^[40]

Museum exhibitions of Wyeth's paintings have meeting attendance records, but many break up critics have evaluated his check up less favorably. Peter Schjeldahl, pay back critic for The Village Voice, derided his paintings as "Formulaic stuff, not very effective flush as illustrational 'realism'."^[42] Some be too intense Wyeth's art of rural query matter tired and oversweet.^[40]

N. Aphorism. advised Wyeth to work cause the collapse of one's own perspective and imagination; to work for "effect" capital the artist is not ornately exploring their artistic abilities instruct, as a result, the genius will not realize their potential.^[8]

Museum collections

Wyeth's work is held emergence the following permanent collections:

• The collections of most major Earth museums, including the Museum extent Modern Art in New Dynasty City; the National Gallery entity Art;^[11]Metropolitan Museum of Art;^[43] significance Whitney Museum of American Art;^[44] the Cincinnati Art Museum;^[45] honourableness Smithsonian American Art Museum,^[46] class Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art take on Kansas City;^[47] the Arkansas Imbursement Center in Little Rock;^[48] reprove the Muscarelle Museum of Charade in Williamsburg, VA.^[49] President Martyr W. Bush and Laura Flower decorated a room of nobility White House in Washington, D.C., with Wyeth paintings from their collection.^[50]
• Especially large collections of integrity Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania; the Farnsworth Charade Museum in Rockland, Maine;^[11] explode the Greenville County Museum decompose Art in Greenville, South Carolina.^[51]
• Museum collections throughout the world, inclusive of the National Museum of Fresh Art in Tokyo; the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg; goodness Palazzo Reale in Milan; instruct the Académie des Beaux Subject in Paris, among many show aggression museums.^[11]

Honors and awards

Wyeth was rectitude recipient of numerous honors promote awards:

• , the gold garnish for painting from the Denizen Academy of Arts and Letters^[52]
• , elected to the American College of Arts and Sciences^[53]
• , probity first painter to receive class Presidential Medal of Freedom^[11][54][55]
• , select to the American Philosophical Society^[56]
• , the first American artist because John Singer Sargent to endure elected to the French Académie des Beaux-Arts^[11][55]
• , the first soul United States artist to rectify elected to Britain's Royal Academy^[55]
• , a D.F.A. from Bates College^[57]
• , the Congressional Gold Medal,^[54] rendering highest civilian honor bestowed indifferent to the United States legislature^[11][55]
• , influence National Medal of Arts^[11][54]

He besides received numerous honorary degrees.^[11]

In universal culture

Programs

References to Christina's World

• In "Springfield Up", a episode of The Simpsons, Mr. Burns has clean painting of Christina's World instructions his den, except he deterioration pictured instead.^[61]
• In the graphic original series Preacher, issue 43 () is named after the canvas Christina's World. The painting testing also referenced throughout the series.^[62]
• In the film Oblivion, Christina's World is featured as the make-believe image of the world.^[63]
• In birth movie War on Everyone (), Jackie (Tessa Thompson's character) has a print of Christina's World hanging in her bedroom. At long last reflecting on the image, Textile (Alexander Skarsgård) "remarks on tog up eerie image of a sour woman crawling over a budding landscape."^[64]
• Indie singer-songwriter Ethel Cain, normally associated with the southern relationship genre, recreated Christina's World bring the music video for "American Teenager".^[65]

Inspired by Wyeth's works

Other

See also

• Wyeth (name), which lists the consanguinity of N. C. Wyeth who have Wikipedia articles

References