Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009)

Siri Erickson

Details

Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009)
Siri Erickson
signed, dated and inscribed 'Siri 1969/A. Wyeth' (lower right)
pencil on paper
13½ x 18¼ in. (34.3 x 46.4 cm.)

Provenance

[With]Galerie Claude Bernard, Paris.
Acquired by the present owner from the above, 1980.

Literature

Galerie Claude Bernard, Andrew Wyeth: Temperas, Aquarelles, Dry Brush, Dessins, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1980, n.p., no. 4, illustrated.

Exhibited

Paris, France, Galerie Claude Bernard, Andrew Wyeth: Temperas, Aquarelles, Dry Brush, Dessins, December 2, 1980-January 31, 1981.

Lot Essay

Siri Erickson is the daughter of George Erickson, who Andrew Wyeth first encountered in the spring of 1967 with his wife, Betsy, while returning from their home in Cushing, Maine on a back road from nearby Thomaston. Upon meeting her, Wyeth was immediately taken by her mature yet innocent countenance. He recalls, "With Siri, you suddenly get this change of such an invigorating, zestful, powerful phenomenon. Here was something bursting forth, like spring coming through the ground. In a way Siri was never a figure to be painted, but more a burst of life." (as quoted in A. Wyeth, Andrew Wyeth: Autobiography, Boston, Massachusetts, 1995, p. 86) The Erickson family would remain a source of inspiration for Wyeth for approximately ten years after they met.

This drawing will be included in Betsy James Wyeth's forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's work.

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