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N.C. Wyeth Biography Continued
Click on a photo to see a larger image.
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N.C. Wyeth in his western "rig," 1904
(Photograph #7) |
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N.C. Wyeth, In the Crystal Depths
(Photograph #8) |
In 1906 Wyeth married Carolyn Brenneman Bockius of Wilmington. The couple lived for a short time in the city, but moved in 1908 to Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, 10 miles north of Wilmington along the Brandywine Creek. Chadds Ford had been the site of Pyle's summer school, and the rolling hills and sycamore trees of the Brandywine Valley had already exerted a profound influence on Wyeth, subduing his enthusiasm for the rough and tumble west. In 1911, the Wyeths purchased 18 acres of property in Chadds Ford, not far from a Revolutionary War battlefield. The proximity appealed to the artist's abiding love of history. Immediately the Wyeths set about to build a house and studio. They would raise five talented children on this property and the valley landscape would become almost sacred to the displaced New Englander.
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N.C. Wyeth, The Studio
(Photograph #9) |
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N.C. Wyeth House, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania
(Photograph #10) |
In 1911, the publishing house of Charles Scribner's Sons engaged Wyeth to illustrate Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, his first commission in Scribner's popular series of classic stories. The 17 paintings that make up the set are masterpieces of American illustration. Their size and scale, unusual in illustrations of the period, give the paintings a heroic quality that is apparent even in the greatly reduced reproductions. Within the set of illustrations, Wyeth brilliantly mixed subject matter. Action and character study are united in each painting to further the narrative beyond the text. In every canvas, Wyeth's superb sense of color and his ability to mix painterly passages with authentic detail prove him a master of the art. Complex compositions and his skillful use of intense light contrasted with deep shadow contribute to a palpable dramatic tension inherent in the paintings and not dependent on the text. These pictures made the Wyeth-illustrated edition of Treasure Island a favorite of generations of readers.
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N.C. Wyeth, Captain Bill Bones
(Photograph #11) |
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N.C. Wyeth, Jim Hawkins Leaves Home
(Photograph #12) |
The success of Treasure Island insured Wyeth a long career with Scribner's, illustrating in succeeding years many classic stories. Among the most famous titles are Kidnapped (1913), The Black Arrow (1916), The Boy's King Arthur (1917), The Mysterious Island (1918), The Last of the Mohicans (1919), The Deerslayer (1925), and The Yearling (1939). He also created illustrations for other publishers, for books such as Robin Hood (Philadelphia: David McKay, 1917); Robinson Crusoe (New York: Cosmopolitan, 1920); Rip Van Winkle (Philadelphia: David McKay, 1921); Men of Concord (Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1936); and Trending Into Maine (Boston: Little, Brown, 1938).
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N.C. Wyeth, endpaper illustration for Last of the Mohicans
(Photograph #13) |
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N.C. Wyeth, They were now fighting above the knees in the spume and bubble of the breakers
(Photograph #14) |
Despite his fame as an illustrator, Wyeth yearned to be known as a painter. The distinction between painting and illustration was an important one, with illustration carrying a pejorative connotation that Wyeth felt keenly all his life. Even though the commissioned work earned him income to support his family, he tried to escape the confines of textual limitations with personal paintings that included landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. From lyrical landscapes in an Impressionist style to powerful portraits of fishermen that recall the work of the American Regionalist artists, Wyeth experimented throughout his career with a wide variety of subjects and styles. However, he never did attain the personal satisfaction or public recognition that he sought.
 
CREDITS
(7) N.C. Wyeth in his western "rig," 1904 by unknown photographer. Photograph courtesy of the Wyeth Family Archives.
(8) N.C. Wyeth, In the Crystal Depths, oil on canvas, 1906. Collection of the Brandywine River Museum.
(9) N.C. Wyeth, The Studio, ca. 1915, oil on canvas. Private collection.
(10.) N.C. Wyeth House, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania.
(11) N.C. Wyeth, Captain Bill Bones, 1911, oil on canvas, illustration for Treasure Island. Collection of the Brandywine River Museum, gift of Mrs.Brigham Britton, 1992.
(12) N.C. Wyeth, Jim Hawkins Leaves Home, oil on canvas, 1911, illustration for Treasure Island. Collection of the Brandywine River Museum, acquisition made possible through the generosity of Patricia Wiman Hewitt, 1994.
(13) N.C. Wyeth, endpaper illustration for Last of the Mohicans, oil on canvas, 1919. Collection of the Brandywine River Museum, given in memory of Raymond Platt Dorland by his children, 1973.
(14) N.C. Wyeth, They were now fighting above the knees in the spume and bubble of the breakers, oil on canvas, 1916, illustration for The Black Arrow. Collection of the Brandywine River Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. S. Hallock du Pont, Jr., 1992.
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For more information, call (610) 388-2700 or send an email to: ncwyethcatalogue@brandywine.org
Brandywine River Museum, U.S. Route 1 & PA Route100, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317
© 2003 Brandywine Conservancy
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