Andrew Wyeth Christina's World

Andrew Wyeth’s most famous piece of art, Christina’s World, is renowned as being one of the most famous of American portraits for its realistic depiction of a classic New England setting and a steadfast mysterious female. Immediately recognizing Wyeth as a notable American artist after the Museum of Modern Art purchased the piece, jump-starting his career in the art world. Along with his rise to prominence, Christina’s World was the first introduction to the “evolution of his own private language of metaphor.” As positioned in the painting, Wyeth’s first impression of Christina occurred when she was out in the field, where he officially recognized her steadfast ambition. Explaining that she "was limited physically but by no means spiritually," …show more content…
With the painting only being of the size 32.25 x 47.75, painted with tempera on gessoed panel, its small size relative to detail is astounding. The painting illustrates an expansive field of dead grass, a rundown farmhouse on the horizon, and an unknown girl laying on the hill. In conjunction with all of these elements, it is obvious that Wyeth is depicting old-fashioned New England, a period which he finds to be satisfactory. The Artist’s method for creating his pieces first consists of pencil sketches and watercolor; Once solidifying the idea, he moves to the canvas, allowing the spectators to sense that the picture holds more depth than the natural eye can perceive. One of Wyeth’s various skills is his ability to remove unnecessary details while still maintaining the general theme of the piece. Highlighting this point, he stated that, “[he] could even have removed Christina… and still, have conveyed the same sense of loneliness.” Furthermore, another interesting method used is his selection of models, instead of asking Christina to pose for the image, he chose his wife, giving Christina a more youthful womanly