Just as the Jamie Wyeth retrospective is taking audiences by storm, the Brandywine River Museum has announced an appearance by another force of nature in the family: his high-energy niece.
Victoria Browning Wyeth will lead a program on Friday, March 13, that promises “lively discussion” and “an intimate view” of renowned artist Jamie Wyeth in conjunction with the exhibition, a sweeping display that spans six decades. “Wyeth on Wyeth: A Family Perspective” will also offer a look inside the Wyeth art dynasty that includes her great grandfather, N.C. Wyeth, and her grandfather, Andrew Wyeth.
Since 2005, Victoria Wyeth’s passionate presentations have captivated crowds at the museum as well as area schools. She said that even though most of her talks have focused primarily on her grandfather’s work, when Thomas Padon, director of the Brandywine River Museum, approached her about a program to complement the retrospective, she didn’t hesitate. “I thought it sounded absolutely awesome,” she said.
She said that her grandfather’s death six years ago left a painful void and that her uncle, who understood the depth of the loss, has provided much-appreciated solace. “He’s been great,” she said, explaining that his pep talks always seem to come at just the right times.
So what will his reaction be when she’s the one doing all the talking? “I have no idea,” she said. “It’s not something we’ve discussed.” However, she laughed when pointing out that her grandmother, Betsy Wyeth, once noted: “Well, you can’t paint, but you sure can talk.”
Victoria Wyeth insisted that she’s no art historian. However, when it comes to family history, few can rival her insight – or her exuberance. In addition, her grandfather schooled her extensively in art media and techniques, she said. In her early days as a tour guide at the museum, she met with him often to discuss questions that people asked about his work.
Some would dispute her insistence that the family’s artistic gene eluded her. A photo that she took of her grandfather in Maine served as a focal point of an Andrew Wyeth Retrospective at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta in 2005. She credited her grandfather's tips about composition for improving her photography.
Victoria Wyeth, 35, no longer maintains a regular schedule at the museum. She explained that her job as a research assistant at Norristown State Hospital and the fact that she now resides with her husband in Philadelphia made that too difficult.
But when an opportunity surfaces, she’s thrilled to revisit her role as a Wyeth ambassador, she said. Anyone interested in Wyeth family secrets, should go elsewhere, she warned. The only skeletons she’s apt to reveal are the ones associated with the Wyeths’ favorite holiday: Halloween. “I share my uncle’s love of the macabre,” she said – for him, a fondness that’s communicated in some of his most celebrated paintings.
“My goal is to bring the paintings to life in a family sense,” she said. “What was going on at the time? What was it like growing up in the family?”
For example, Victoria Wyeth said she’s not surprised that birds – from a giant raven to ravenous seagulls – figure prominently in her uncle’s work. “Betsy [Wyeth] is obsessed with birds,” she said, adding that her grandmother is known for keeping binoculars around her neck to facilitate her ornithology interests.
Victoria Wyeth said she hopes to give visitors a fresh view of her uncle’s artistic evolution. “I think the most important thing is context,” she said. “Stuff doesn’t just happen; it’s shaped by events … My perspective is just what I’ve observed, and it’s a little different from other people’s [perspective].”
She said her grandmother once called her a “city slicker” because she spent her early years in Manhattan, where her father, Nicholas Wyeth, was the primary art dealer for her grandfather's work, and her mother, Jane, was an art consultant. And although Victoria Wyeth was initially unaccustomed to the livestock that shared Wyeth properties in Chadds Ford as well as Maine, she adjusted, ultimately interacting with some that achieved fame, such as Den-Den, the subject of Jamie Wyeth’s “Portrait of Pig.”
“I grew up with my uncle and his animals,” Victoria Wyeth said, adding that it’s a special relationship, one that she enjoys discussing. “When you love someone like my uncle as much as I do, it comes out.”
Her March 13 presentation is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. But starting at 6 p.m., complimentary small plates will be available with a cash bar. Guests can tour the exhibition and other galleries after the presentation. The cost is $20 members and $25 for non-members. Seats are limited and likely to sell out. Tickets are available online, by phone at 610-388-8326, or at the museum For more information, visit http://www.brandywinemuseum.org/calendar_events.html.
"Jamie Wyeth" will be on display at the Brandywine River Museum through April 5. Located on Route 1 in Chadds Ford, the museum is open daily (except Christmas) from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. General admission is $15, adults; $10 seniors (65+); $6, students with ID and children ages 6-12. Free for children ages 5 and under as well as conservancy members.
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