The Wyeths: Three Generations

Works from the Bank of America Collection

May 13-August 20, 2023

Drawing from the Bank of America Collection, The Wyeths: Three Generations provides a revealing survey of works by N.C. Wyeth, one of America’s finest illustrators; his son Andrew, an important realist painter; Andrew’s son Jamie, a popular portraitist; and members of the extended family. Visitors will explore 66 paintings and drawings by artists from three generations of the Wyeth family, all showcasing a commitment to realism, technical brilliance, and narrative sensibility.

N.C. Wyeth (American, 1882–1945) has long been considered one of the nation’s leading illustrators, a versatile artist who was able to traverse fantasy and realism. In the early 1900s, he studied with illustrator Howard Pyle in Delaware. In 1911, he built a house and studio in nearby Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. Later, he bought a sea captain’s house in Maine and in 1931 built a small studio, which he shared with his son Andrew and his daughters. The exhibition includes illustrations for books by Robert Louis Stevenson and Washington Irving as well as historical scenes, seascapes, and landscapes.

Born 100 years ago, Andrew Wyeth (American, 1917–2009) is one of the United States’ most popular artists, known for his haunting, detailed paintings in the American Realist tradition. He was influenced by the works of Winslow Homer, whose watercolor technique he admired, as well as by the art of Howard Pyle and his father N.C. While Andrew painted recognizable images, his use of line and space often imbue his works with an underlying abstract quality. The exhibition includes important works from across his career.

Although not as well-known as her brother, Henriette Wyeth (American, 1907-1997) painted striking portraits, landscapes, and still lifes. She is also represented in the exhibition, as is her husband, Peter Hurd (American, 1904-1984), who chronicled the landscape of the American West.

Jamie Wyeth (American, b. 1946), like his father and grandfather, paints subjects of everyday life, turning his wry, playful eye to the landscape, animals and people of Pennsylvania and Maine. In contrast to his father—who painted with watercolor, drybrush and tempera—Jamie works in oil and mixed media, creating lush painterly surfaces. The 18 paintings in the exhibition represent all periods of his career.