Andrew Wyeth 1504

A well known example of American Realism is Andrew Wyeth. He has a

certain "affection" for the objects and people which surround him. These

Wyeth records with remarkable likeness, poetic charm, and a "powerful

silence". These statements can be applied to both people and still life. I

agree with David McCord in his statement in Andrew Wyeth, page 24, "to

that powerful silence one must add enormous stillness."

All of Wyeth's works emit that special poetic charm, but it is best

illustrated in his use of water versus the landscape. In River Cove the water

sits so still and calm it appears to be dead. The only life visible on the land is

a few clam and mussel shells along with the tracks left behind by some local

bird. The only fauna that can be seen is reflection of evergreens in the water.

This painting is hauntingly still with a profound simplicity. There are no

people visible, and no evidence of people inhabiting the area. In this sense

the viewer has a "birds eye view" of an untouched, natural paradise.

The "powerful silence" and "enormous silence" described by David

McCord in the opening paragraph is most apparent in Wyeth's distinguished

piece appropriately named after its subject entitled Christina's World.

In Christina's World Wyeth depicts his young neighbor struggling to

reach a farm house, perhaps her home, in the distance. The strongest

emotion which radiates from this painting is silence. There are no other

figured in the portrait as the crippled girl looks longingly to the farm. A

slight breeze is detectable as strands of Christina's hair float as wisps. The

sea-shell pink dress gives the subject a sense of maturity and girl-hood at the

same time. Her back is turned towards the viewer so any emotion Christina

is feeling must be derived from her body positioning and the outstretched

arms. The other colors in the painting may be considered bland, but to me

they are rich with the color of the earth. This draws the viewers eye first to

Christina (in the contrasting pink dress) and then to the earth toned

farmhouse at the top of the hill. Christina's World may even represent

something greater. The field is brown, yet endless. Although crippled

Christina props herself up on her arms. This can be an allegory showing life

holding on, which is why people can identify with the painting so well. A

person can see that life pulls through even in art so it will make them feel

optimistic about their own life. About the creation of Christina's World

Wyeth has said:

When I painted it in 1948, Christina's World hung all summer

in my house in Maine and nobody particularly reacted to it. I thought,

'Boy is this one a flat tire.' Now I get at least a letter a week from all

over the world, usually wanting to know what she's doing. Actually

there isn't any definite story. The way the tempera happened, I was in

an upstairs room in the Olson house and saw Christina crawling in the

field, I later went down on the road and made a pencil drawing of the

house, but went down into the field. You see, my memory was more

of a reality than the thing itself. I didn't put Christina in till the very

end. I worked on the hill for months, that brown grass, and kept

thinking about her in her pink dress like a faded lobster shell I might

find on the beach, crumpled, finally I got up enough courage to say to

her, " Would you mind if I made a drawing of you sitting outside?"

and drew her crippled arms and hands. Finally, I was so shy about

posing her, I got my wife Betsy to pose for her figure. Then it came

time to lay in Christina's figure against that planet I'd created for her

all those weeks, I put this pink tone on her shoulder - and it almost

blew me across the room." (Corn pp.38)

Wyeth's American Realism style has a French counterpart - Edouard

Manet. In Wyeths Helga series, the young women (Helga) is painted both

in the nude and clothed. She is depicted in various poses; Helga stands, lays

on a bed facing away from the viewer, looks over her shoulder, and many

other positions Wyeth himself feels is appealing to the viewer.

Manet's Olympia and Wyeth's Black Velvet are similar in content and

form, yet have contradicting purposes and motivations. Manet was

concerned with showing the boldness of a woman (perhaps a prostitute)

with no subtle allure. By doing this he defies tradition and then went a step

further by using a minimum of shading, flattened them so that they resembled

the figures in Japanese prints. (Fiero, 98) Helga in Black Velvet is similar to

Olympia in her body positioning, except her head is turned away and she

appears to be asleep. Wyeth's motive, unlike Manet, was to "preserve the

abstract flesh". (Wilmerding, 60) By using the black velvet ribbon around

his subjects neck (such as Manet did) and keeping the rest of her body

perfectly nude, Wyeth draws attention to and emphasizes her nakedness. In

Olympia the black velvet may raise attention to the females availability, but

in Black Velvet the ribbon calls attention to Helga's innocence and unguarded

sexuality.

Another portrait from the Helga series, titled Crown of Flowers illustrates

Wyeth's poetic charm. Helga's hair is down and flowing with the vitality of

youth. Her blue eyes stare off into the distance while a slight smile, similar

to that of the Mona Lisa's is displayed upon her face. A crown of flowers

adorns her head. The flowers represent the beauty of Helga at this time and

the fleetingness of youth. Helga and her crown are almost personifies as

nature itself . Natural, beautiful, and true Helga can be compared to

Rembrandt's Saskia as Flora. A young woman, an adolescent on the verge

of womanhood, wears a crown of flowers similar to Helga's. Although

Rembrandt's figure is ornately dressed with a more elaborate crown, the

crown of flowers can be seen as representing the same idea in each painting.

As John Wilmerding stated on page 60 of The Helga Series each womans

floral wreath links her to natures capacity for growth and rebirth.

Even the most mundane subjects can be brought to life by Wyeth's

talented hand and palette. In Groundhog Day a simple place setting is

displayed upon a table while sun drifts in through a window above the table.

Through the windowpane a barbed wire fence can be seen, along with logs

which have been freshly cut. Behind this is the start of a forest and the

continuation of the barbed wire fence. This picture represents the simplicity

and beauty of farm life. The delicate imagery of flower arrangements on the

wall paper releases a comfortable feeling of home and welcomes the viewer

to the painting. Many people outside of New England, especially in the cities

of may not understand the beauty of simplicity in country life. This is one

way, by painting, where Wyeth can show them the homely grace of the true

countryman. (McCord, 23)

Wyeth's work also resembles that of his contemporaries. Take for

example his admiration and resemblance in his early work to that of Winslow

Homer. Homers oil on canvas often appear "busy" compared to that of

Wyeth. Take for instance Homer's The Country School. The teacher stands

in front of the class and reads to the students as they follow along in their

own books. If this had been a painting by Wyeth the schoolhouse would be

nearly empty with only the teacher left working on her planner. One of the

windows would be half open with a slight breeze billowing the curtains. The

view of the subject would be close-up with great detail. Compared to

Homer, Wyeth has a central figure in his paintings with little to no

surrounding figures to draw your attention away. His paintings of objects

(such as Groundhog Day) almost seem empty when first viewed. There is

not any kind of activity taking place so the viewer may feel a little "bored".

Once the viewer keeps looking at Wyeth's painting he or she will realize the

remarkable talent required to produce such a serene and peaceful work of art.

To conclude, Wyeth appropriately defines American Realism. He takes

objects and people from his everyday life and transforms them into

something magnificent. My favorite painting of his is Christina's World.

Ever since the first time I viewed it in junior high it has remained in my

memory. Every time I look at it I remember my first impression and how it

keeps changing as I learn more about both the painter and the subject. I

believe Wyeth best described his work and reason for painting when he said

"If somehow I can, before I leave this earth, combine my absolutely mad

freedom and excitement with truth, then I will have done something."