Newell Convers Wyeth Books

An informative book on what motivated NC to do what he did, but not much on how he arrived at certain colors, composition, studies before completing a major work, etc. There is a lot of information that seems unnecessary, but it all comes together at the end. If you want to know the progression of his work, it is here; but there is not alot on technique.

The forementioned "Biography at its best" is fitting. David Michaelis went the extra mile to gather coupious historical data on Wyeth and his background. The evidence given paints a picture of the very soul of this man, almost to the point of smelling his oil-stained hands.

It is remarkable to catch a glimpse of this energetic and powerful artist who somehow balanced family, busines and sanity by applying passion to all he encountered. Whether or not our hero was particularly faithful to his wife can be argued, but his evident ability to excel in whatsoever he set out to do is inspiring.

A great read for those interested in disciplining one's self to master the studio and the home.

My brother loaned me a copy of this book because we both collect American illustrations. That qualifies some of my enthusiasm for this book a bit. I am already a fan of the golden age(s) of American illustration.
The life of N. C. Wyeth is impressively detailed by the author. He mostly uses detailed and extensive letters written by the family to piece together what would seem a very accurate account of N.C.'s life. This book helped piece together some of the influences I assumed N.C. had throughout his life. From Pyle to the war, depression, to family, it was a very complicated life for the entire family. A great read with enough personal melodrama to keep it very interesting. My only complaint was the occasional writing quirk where the author sometime wrote of the future while writing mostly a chronological book. It's hard to describe, but readers will notice this and occasionally get a little confused by the style. That's my only negative comment. (And frankly, I do not see how this writing method could have been avoided since some of the information was necessary in order to piece the story together.)

I don't know if there is another Family that has continuously contributed to the world of art, and done so with such skill, as the 5 generations of Wyeths whose story is told in this work.

The title of my review may seem a bit odd but I believe those who read this book will find it appropriate. I read this book when it originally was published and then recently read it again. You need not be anything more than someone who loves to read to enjoy this book. While I am a great admirer of Mr. Andrew Wyeth's work and to a lesser extent other members of the Wyeth Family, I have no Art History education. The beauty of this work is that it is an incredible story on it's own, that additionally the story is true with 2 Wyeth Family members still painting, only enhances the reading. The fact this is not fiction makes the story all the more remarkable.

If you have already read about Mr. Andrew Wyeth's work you certainly will gain a great deal of insight as to why he may view his art as he does. Another wonderful book that focuses on Mr. Andrew Wyeth is by Richard Merryman, "Andrew Wyeth A Secret Life". It often seems that great artists in a range of artistic fields seem to have more than their share of drama in their lives. This is certainly the case with this 5 generational span of the Wyeths. There is also a great deal of tragedy and sadness.

Whether or not you are aware of or enjoy the work of The Wyeth Clan, they have and will continue to remain of great importance to Art History. Ranging from the illustrations by N.C Wyeth of dozens of books that are known to us all, to some of the most recognized images in the world as is the case with Andrew Wyeth's "Christina's World" from 1948, chances are you do know of the Wyeths.

The story most don't know is of the woman who is in the mentioned painting, her lifetime, and the stories and paintings that resulted from the house that she is looking towards in the painting. Not all of what you will learn is comfortable, some is sad; some behavior from members of the Family is eccentric to say the least.

What you will experience is a sweeping story that continues to this day. If an endorsement by an internationally acclaimed Artist would help, read what Mr. Barry Moser had to say about this book. And then go look at the book he was illustrating, the work he set aside to read this story. I cannot think of a more reliable recommendation.

Know the Family, know the work, or read as a novel. You will not de disappointed.

Although I was familiar with the paintings of Andrew & Jamie Wyeth, I wasn't aware of N.C. until I read his letters in Dorie McCullough Lawson's wonderful collection, "Posterity: Letters of Great Americans to Their Children." The brilliant writing in those letters, and the story of the tragic accident that killed him and his little grandson, made me want to know more. It led me to this book. I've just finished it, and can't stop thinking about it. If a novelist made up this saga, one might say it was just too fantastic. And yet the most fantastic thing of all is that it's true. David Michaelis weaves the tale, not just of N.C. Wyeth, but of his family and his times. Although so many people are introduced, the writing is clear and vibrant, and one never loses track of who's who. No novel could be more compelling than this saga, with twists and turns that almost had me gasping. Biography just doesn't get any better than this. Whether or not you're interested in Art, it is well worth your time. Bravo to Mr. Michaelis!

This video is very close to being great, but I wish the producers would update it with N.C.Wyeth's pirate paintings, and Jamie Wyeth's new painting "Night Vision."
I bought the video "Patriots and Pirates" because it seems to fit in with the theme of Liberty against the Law that my English composition classes was studying. The beginnings of liberty on sailing ships, the American Revolution, and the modern take on patriotism: all these appear in Howard Pyle, N.C.Wyeth, and Jamie Wyeth's work. Jamie Wyeth called this video "Pirates and Patriots," which seems to have more of a ring to it. Please make a new version with the pirates, to complete what was a great idea for a video.

This book shows the comparison of grandfather (N.C) and grandson's (Jamie) work. An excellent study. I have always considerend N.C.'s work superior to any of the other Wyeths, Andrew's specifically and in particular. This book pretty much affirms it. Check it out.

This book shows the comparison of grandfather (N.C) and grandson's (Jamie) work. An excellent study. I have always considerend N.C.'s work superior to any of the other Wyeths, Andrew specifically and in particular. This book pretty much affirms it. Check it out.

It should be called "Patriots and Portraits". I have the book and went to see the show, but the title is a misnomer. You will be very disappointed if you are looking for N. C. Wyeth's pirate paintings. The are no Pirate paintings. The N.C. Wyeth paintings are mainly war and patriotic painting. The Jamie Wyeth paintings are mainly portraits of patriots.

I have the book and went to see the show, but the title is a misnomer. It should be called "Patriots and Portraits". You will be very disappointed if you are looking for N. C. Wyeth's Pirate paintings. The are no Pirate paintings. The N.C. Wyeth paintings are mainly war and patriotic paintings. The Jamie Wyeth paintings are mainly portraits of patriots.

I do understand why other reviewers are miffed at the small reproductions. But in balance I felt there were an ample number of decent single page images. Yes there is heaps of whitespace but the worst excesses are around the chapters of text, it's not so bad in the image sections. The reproduction quality and colour balance is gloriously good, so the full pagers are a real treat and even the 1/9th page images are enjoyable. The best thing about the volumes is the quantity of images - there are literally thousands that have been tracked down and reproduced. If they were to give each the full glory treatment of a page apiece, then there would be several more volumes and a price tag many times higher. I would commend that Wyeth fans buy this set and, rather than moan to Brandywine about the average image size, lobby the publishers to produce some supplementary volumes that can expand on themes within his work - eg: Wyeth pirates, Wyeth cowboys, Wyeth civil war etc. It would be great if supplementary volumes could be done in a similar manner - slipcased, cloth bound hardcover and at this large folio size.

I have long awaited the arrival of a good N.C. Wyeth book. When I saw this book was released I was elated...a bit taken back by the price though. Well I justified it seeing that it is a 2 book box set. When it arrived the first dissapointment was bad shipping. This set had inadequate protection and recieved a hole through the box from an shipping. Secondly, and most disappointing, was the fact that the images were often soooo small. Some that I've seen previously published much bigger are shown so small I felt compelled to get a magnifying glass. Because I'd seen them larger I knew it was a possiblity. I personally feel that the Brandywine museum should be ashamed of this publication. The Wyeth family should be outraged! As the first reviewer stated, the white space is huge. In some areas, 4-5 inches large, while the images are small! I have to say, since I so longed to see this publication, or at least the one I had hopped to see, my heart actually ached after the waiting and the cost of this item. My recommendation is to save your money till they lower the price even more and do what I plan to do, send a letter of complaint to the Brandywine Museum. After all the great publications on Andrew, this is what we get to represent N.C.? How disappointing!

It's great to see the length and breadth of N. C. Weyth's work, but this Raisonne despite its size (at 10 pounds a book) and quality printing, suffers from the artists own prodigious output. So exciting too see so much unseen work, but so disappointing to see so much of it so small. The exhaustive technical descriptions and layout choices to leave tons of white space around everything makes it time and again feel like a collection of stamps. A third volume was needed to do this the right way so the best of the art could be shown at the size it merits. More is less in this case.
That said this is a long overdue book that clearly shows the N.C. Weyth was unfairly overlooked in the art histories as a master who should have not been over shadowed by his talented, but rendering oriented son. N.C. was a painter; Andrew is a fastidious observer of detail. The combination of Weyth seniors style exploration, staying to long in illustration, his early death, the ugly discrimination of the art world, and his son's overriding pureness of personal vision prevented N. C. from being considered one of America's most important artists. I hope this book corrects that perfect storm of ignorance of his greatness. I urge the publishers to a expanded version that shows more the art at a good size, I'll buy it too.

This book is very informative for book sellers.
Wyeth has done cover art for allot of books. This book tells of most of his works, and also includes the book Titles that he has done work on. If you are going to sell books you should know a little about what you are selling, this book is very helpful.

It should be noted, and future buyers beware, the photographs of the illustrations and paintings are in BLACK & WHITE. Why on earth anyone would reproduce these marvelous pieces without their original color is beyond me. It's as bad as only printing the left half of the illustration or the right half but not showing it in it's entirety.