One of my favorites from the Tribute to Andrew Wyeth at the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland, Maine.

“You see, I don’t say, ‘Well, not I’m going to go out and find something to paint.’ To H*** with that.  You might as well stay home and have a good glass of whiskey.  Really, I just walk a great deal over the countryside.  I try to leave myself very blank – a kind of grounding board all the time, very open to catch a vibration, a tune from something or somebody.” – Andrew Wyeth, Life

Farnsworth Museum.

“Amazes me all the people!” An older woman wearing a green flannel coat looks up from the Guest Book at the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland, Maine. “One from Egypt!”  

Rockland, Maine.

Rockland is the county seat of Knox County.  It is a tourist spot, as galleries and restaurants dot Main Street.  Mostly white haired couples walk hand-in-hand along the streets in L.L. Bean coats and blue jeans that taper at the ankles.  As Tom dropped me off last night, he recommends that Lisa and I should check out the Farnsworth Museum.  Andrew Wyeth, whom had a summer home close by, would frequent the museum and also show many of his paintings in his lifetime.  There is currently a tribute to the “painter of the people,” that Tom says you can’t miss.

The Big Room by Andrew Wyeth.

Andrew Wyeth.

I am not that familiar with his work and what I have seen, I thought a bit boring.  In the conference room at the school that I worked at in Central Virginia, there was a poster of Wyeth’s painting, The Big Room.  The Big Room is a large airy room showing a fireplace, a small table with what could be apples in a bowl, a mantel place adorned with an antique clock and some photographs, and the sun setting through the windows.  I like people and I like paintings and photographs depicting people.  So, in meetings in the conference room, I definitely wondered what the draw of this painting was.

Laura happens.

 I love art museums and I figured I had to see his work up close to really be a judge.  Unfortunately, the clerk tells me it is 12$ to see the museum.  He won’t be talked down and there are no discounts for hitchhikers.  As I contemplate leaving, I must have looked chagrined because Laura steps from behind me and states she would like three tickets.  One for her and her husband and also buying my ticket.  Wow!  What a lady!  She and her husband are from Corning, New York.  She says that I should go see Wyeth’s work in the Philadelphia museum as there are more pieces.

The Patroit. Another of my faves from the exhibit.

See for yourself.

It took me awhile to get art and looking at art museums.  But now that I can, it is totally different to see art in person than in a poster or on the computer.  To look at the brushstrokes and to see the painting at it’s real size cannot be duplicated.  So, I dig Andrew Wyeth now!  I won’t go into the specifics, but great colors.  Also, he has paintings that depict people!

I had a great time.

The Lesson.

I learned a lesson from the experience.  Until I see something for myself. Till I stand in front of something and am open to the experience of it.  Till I can get really close and notice the brush strokes and how much paint a painter used, I should not judge nor write anything off.  If I do, I lose out!  I lose the chance to experience something beautiful.  

Create Our World.

Ben

“It’s a moment that I’m after, a fleeting moment, but not a frozen moment.” – Andrew Wyeth

Tags: adventure travel blog, andrew wyeth, Benjamin Jenks, create our world, farnsworth museum, hitchhiking, roadtrip around the USA, rockland maine
Categories: Art., People.

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