Studio of Artist Andrew Wyeth Named National Historic Landmark

The National Park Service has expanded a local national landmark to include the longtime studio of one of the best-known artists of the mid-20th century, Andrew Wyeth. Wyeth, who passed away in 2009 at the age of 91, is known for his realist paintings. The son of famous illustrator N. C. Wyeth, Andrew spent many years studying and painting his hometown of Chadds Ford. Some of his favorite subjects included his neighbors, Anna and Karl Kuerner, and their farm. The farm was also where Wyeth met Helga Testorf, a caregiver who became the subject of many of his paintings in the 70s and 80s.

Kuerner Farm was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2011 based on its association with Wyeth, and the Brandywine Conservancy and Brandywine River Museum of Art have been looking after the property. Renamed the Andrew Wyeth Studio and Kuerner Farm National Historic Landmark today, the expansion includes the converted schoolhouse that Wyeth used as his studio for over 70 years.

The studio currently stands near the Brandywine Conservancy’s main complex and nearby lies N. C. Wyeth’s home and studio, which were named historic landmarks in 1997. The combination of the father and son’s workspaces, alongside the vast land of the Kuerner Farm, makes for a unique experience at the Brandywine River Museum. Many of the works visitors see there were created within these studios using the surrounding property as inspiration. Visitors can look through Wyeth’s eyes, so to speak, at the nearly unchanged landscape and see many of the vistas he painted.

For more information on visiting the Brandywine River Museum of Art, visit Brandywine.org.