Andrew Wyeth

Barbara B. Rupprecht, Palmer Township, Pennsylvania

Estate of the above

Hamilton Auctions, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Acquired from the above circa 1985 by the present owner

Corn Harvest occupies a unique position in Andrew Wyeth’s seven-decade career, as a rare painting made in oil before the artist adopted his signature medium of tempera. As such, the present work provides special insight into the development of one of America’s most important twentieth century artists. The bucolic scene illustrates a pair of farmers resting against a sheaf of corn, as one shucks an ear of corn to indicate the harvest’s golden bounty. Wyeth’s visible brushstrokes in the foreground notably contrast with the illusionism of the storm clouds in the sky; while the former appear closer to the painterly gusto of his father and teacher, N.C. Wyeth, the latter predicts the pristine realism that Wyeth would soon achieve in tempera.

Corn Harvest was painted near the John Andress Farm in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. This work is accompanied by a letter from Nicholas Wyeth, the artist's eldest son.