N.C. Wyeth: Painter and Illustrator Works from 1903 - 1940
June 14th – August 24th, 2019 Publication by:
101 Stone Block Row, Breck’s Mill, 2nd Floor, Greenville, DE 19807 (302) 652-0271 info@somervillemanning.com
Foreword In the late 1980's a collector purchased a first edition of Treasure Island, fell in love with N.C. Wyeth and knowing of my friendship with the Wyeth family, asked me to find him a painting by the artist. That momentous event began my wondrous journey into the world of N.C. Wyeth. Carolyn Wyeth inherited N.C.'s estate and Andrew Wyeth was the executor. After that initial painting sale Andrew appointed me Carolyn's dealer to represent the estate. I spent many fascinating hours sitting in her kitchen listening to stories about her father and their family. At that time illustration was the poor cousin of fine art and although people admired N.C. Wyeth for his illustrations, he did not garner the immense respect he does today in the world of art. His paintings are extraordinary, vibrant, brilliant, energetic, filled with imagination and so was he. Ann Wyeth McCoy told me when her father walked into a room his presence filled it completely. Besides this remarkable legacy of paintings, he created five brilliant children and instilled in them the same outstanding imagination he utilized in his work, an enviable feat of parenting and artistic skill. The energy of N.C. Wyeth embodied everything he touched; family, painting, and writing. With great joy I welcome you to explore his world in this exhibition N.C. Wyeth: Painter and Illustrator. -Victoria L. Manning
Paintings available for acquisition
King Mark slew the noble knight Sir Tristram as he sat harping before his lady la Belle Isolde | 1917 | oil on canvas | 40 x 32 inches Illustration for "The Boy's King Arthur," by Sidney Lanier, (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1917)
Boulders | c. 1911/1912 | oil on canvas | 25 x 30 inches Rocky Hill, Chadds Ford, location of the Wyeth family property.
Eli and the Boy Samuel | 1928 | oil on canvas | 43 1/8 x 32 inches Illustration for "Children of the Bible, Part III, The Boy Who Anointed Two Kings," by Bruce Barton, (Good Housekeeping, March 1929)
Hazy Afternoon | 1908/1911 | oil on canvas | 24 7/8 x 29 7/8 inches Curatorial comment from N.C. Wyeth Catalogue RaisonnĂŠ: This is the view looking toward Chadds Ford from the property Wyeth rented between April 1908 and March 1911.
He looked at the boy a long time and fancied he could see some resemblance to the portrait | 1930/1931 | oil on canvas | 34 x 25 Âź inches Illustration for "The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come," by John Fox, Jr., (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1931)
A California Mission | 1918 | oil on canvas | 39 ½ x 26 ¼ inches Illustration for “Essentials of American History,” by Thomas B. Lawler, (Boston: Ginn & Company, 1918)
Rebel Jerry and Yankee Jake | 1930/1931 | oil on canvas | 34 x 25 inches Illustration for "The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come," by John Fox, Jr., (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1931)
Still Life with Pitcher, Bowl, and Framed Picture | oil on canvas | 25 x 30 inches
When He Comes He Will Rule Over the Whole World | 1913 | oil on canvas | 44 x 32 inches Frontispiece illustration for "The Lost Boy," by Henry Van Dyke, (Harper's Monthly Magazine, December 1913)
The Husking Bee | 1941 | oil on hardboard (Renaissance Panel) | 32 ½ x 25 inches Cover illustration (Woman's Day Magazine, October 1946)
Untitled (Chadds Ford landscape) | 1903 | oil on canvas | 24 x 16 inches Harvey's Run from Turner's Mill to Chadds Ford.
Untitled (N.C. Wyeth’s barn) | ca. 1917 | oil on canvas | 15 7/8 x 20 inches Curatorial comment from N.C. Wyeth Catalogue RaisonnÊ: This is the view of Wyeth's barn, looking north from his studio to the south facade.
The Horse Fell With His Rider to the Bottom of the Cliff | c. 1927 | oil on canvas | 30 x 40 inches Illustration for “Michael Strogoff / A Courier of the Czar,” by Jules Verne, (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1927)
Paintings on loan for exhibition
We thank our lenders for their generosity.
After that I visited Lee, first at intervals of several days, then, by degrees, more frequently, until finally I became a daily user of opium | 1913 | oil on canvas | 32 x 44 1/8 inches Illustration for "A Modern Opium Eater: A Newspaper Man's Story of His Own Experience with the Drug," (The American Magazine, June 1914) On Loan in Loving Memory of Anita Stein and Rick Stein
Herring Gut | 1932 | oil on canvas | 36 ¼ x 40 1/8 inches On Loan from the Brandywine River Museum of Art, Gift of John Biggs III, Charles R. Biggs, and Anna B. Pierce, 1982
Life Mask of John Keats | 1926 | oil on canvas | 31 ½ x 32 inches
On Loan from Private Collection, Delaware, Courtesy of Art Finance Partners, New York
Still Life with Onions | ca. 1931 | oil on canvas | 32 1/8 x 40 3/8 inches On Loan from the Brandywine River Museum of Art, Purchased with funds given in memory of Clement R. Hoopes by his family and friends, 1980
The Storm on the Firth of Clyde | 1921 | oil on canvas | 40 1/8 x 32 1/4 inches Illustration “The Scottish Chiefs,” by Jane Porter, (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1921) On Loan from Private Collection
The Converted Barn | c. 1908 | oil on canvas | 25 x 30 inches Curatorial comment from N.C. Wyeth Catalogue RaisonnĂŠ:
Planning to move permanently to Chadds Ford in the spring of 1908, in October 1907 Wyeth arranged to rent a farm just east of the village. The property had two barns, one of which he used as a studio (Betsy James Wyeth, ed., ps. 221 and 222). On Loan from Private Collection
The Great Understanding | 1915 | oil on canvas | 33 1/8 x 25 1/8 inches Illustration for "The Great Understanding," by Mary Heaton Vorse, (McClure's Magazine, February 1916)
On Loan from Private Collection
The Magician and the Maid of Beauty High in the sky he saw a rainbow, and on it the Maid of Beauty | 1912 | oil on canvas | 33 ½ x 47 inches Illustration for “The Sampo,” by James Baldwin (1841-1925), (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1912)
On Loan from Jamie Wyeth
The Nor'westers Built Canoes that Would Carry Twelve Men | 1905 | oil on canvas | 25 ½ x 37 ½ inches Illustration for "The Nor'westers," by Arthur E. McFarlane, (Saturday Evening Post, November 18, 1905) On Loan from Private Collection
The Thanksgiving Feast (including Thanksgiving with the Indians), presentation painting | 1940 oil on hardboard | 12 ½ x 57 ž inches Illustration for Metropolitan Life Insurance Company commission On Loan from Private Collection
untitled (Chadds Ford landscape sketch of hills, with rail fence and unfinished tree in foreground) | 1912/15 | oil on canvas | 25 x 30 inches
On Loan from Jamie Wyeth
untitled (landscape reflected in water) | 1912 | oil on canvas | 25 1/8 x 30 1/8 inches
On Loan from Private Collection
untitled (phantom female figures gliding over lake) | oil on canvas adhered hardboard | 37 3/8 x 57 inches On Loan from Jamie Wyeth
Wallace’s Vision | 1921 | oil on canvas | 40 x 32 inches Illustration for “The Scottish Chiefs,” by Jane Porter, (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1921) On Loan from Private Collection
War | 1913 | oil on canvas | 47 ½ x 38 ¼ inches Illustration for “War, or What Happens When One Loves One's Enemy,” by John Luther Long, (Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1913) .
On Loan from Private Collection
Summer | 1909 | oil on canvas | 34 x 30 Âź inches Illustration for "The Moods," by George T. Marsh, (Scribner's Magazine, December 1909) On Loan from Private Collection
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