Andrew Wyeth: Close Friends [B1588]

2001 HCDJ, 9.5x11-inches, 159-glossy pages, in nice clean condition. Generally regarded as "America's Painter," realist Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009) is perhaps the most well known of the artistic Wyeth family dynasty, which includes his father N.C. Wyeth, sister Henriette Hurd, and son Jamie Wyeth. Although most recent explorations of this artist have focused on his family and on the Helga pictures, this unique publication chronicles seven decades of an underappreciated yet historically relevant aspect of his relationship to home and community.

Andrew Wyeth: Close Friends is the first critical look at a significant body of paintings and works on paper depicting Wyeth's African-American friends and neighbors in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, a quaint village on the Brandywine River, where he has lived since birth. Andrew Wyeth: Close Friends includes over 100 color reproductions of major tempera and watercolor paintings and numerous black-and-white images of graphite drawings. Works reproduced are drawn from public and private collections, with a large number from the personal collection of the Wyeths. In addition to a foreword by Museum Director R. Andrew Maass, the book includes family photographs and facsimiles of personal correspondence.

From Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Ohh... I am so happy with this purchase! Even though it's used, it is still coffee table yummy. I guess you could call me Andrew Wyeth-obsessed. What I love about this particular book is that it has images I hadn't seen before. There are also copies of correspondences between Wyeth and others. It's an insight into his life I wasn't expecting."; "Great printed quality of images to accompany text."; "Andrew Wyeth never disappoints me. The subject matter: his neighbors, was handled with the same sensitivity and skill of his other subjects. The sense of empathy with the people and their placement in the rural world in which both painter and subjects lived is moving."; "This is a highly accomplished book that really conveys Wyeth's deep love for those close to him and his reverence for their lives. I was deeply impressed by how sincerely he portrayed the people close to him who lived alongside him throughout his life."