BRANDYWINE RIVER MUSEUM TO OPEN
KUERNER FARM FOR PUBLIC TOURS
(March 2004, #003)

Beginning April 28, the Brandywine River Museum will offer educational tours of the historic Kuerner Farm. For more than 70 years, the farm has been a major source of inspiration to Andrew Wyeth. Since his earliest painting of the farm in 1932 at the age of 15, Wyeth has portrayed its people, animals, buildings and landscapes in over 1,000 works of art. Guided tours of the farm will allow visitors to explore Andrew Wyeth's creative process and view areas of the property depicted in many of his works.

Through November 21, tours will be offered at timed intervals, Wednesday through Sunday. The tour fee is $5 per person in addition to museum admission. It will depart from the Brandywine River Museum by shuttle bus. Due to uneven walking surfaces, the Kuerner Farm is not accessible to disabled individuals.

On one of his boyhood walks, Andrew Wyeth discovered Karl and Anna Kuerner's farm, located approximately one mile from his parentsí home in Chadds Ford. Wyeth was intrigued by the Kuerners, who emigrated from Germany, and by Karl Kuerner's stories of his service in the German army during World War I. The Kuerners had strong ties to their heritage, continuing to speak German and socializing mostly with other German immigrants. Andrew Wyeth was one exception. As a young artist, he developed a close relationship with the Kuerners, and after years of gaining their trust, he was permitted to roam the property freely- even inside the house- to draw and paint.

Many of Wyeth's best-known works of art have emerged from his long fascination with the farm, including Winter 1946 (1946), Groundhog Day (1959), Young Bull (1960), Spring Fed (1967), Evening at Kuerners (1970) and Overflow (1978). Reproductions of these works will be viewed on the tour, along with parts of the house, barn and property to demonstrate how Wyeth alters the physical details of a site in order to communicate a particular idea.

The Kuerner Farm was acquired by the Brandywine Conservancy, the Brandywine River Museum's parent organization, in 1999 and will open in conjunction with the completion of the Conservancy's two-year facilities expansion project. Results of the project include two new galleries and a children's classroom in the Brandywine River Museum, renovations to two buildings for the Conservancy's Environmental Management Center, a new membership and development office building, and a new support and maintenance building.

Founded in 1967, the Brandywine Conservancy is a nonprofit organization that preserves art and environmental resources, primarily of the Brandywine Valley. The Conservancy's Brandywine River Museum is internationally known for its collection of works by three generations of Wyeths, illustration, still life and landscape art. Since its opening exhibition in 1971, the museum has introduced millions of visitors to the Brandywine Valley's rich artistic heritage.

For more information about the Brandywine Conservancy, call 610-388-2700 or visit the museum's website at www.brandywinemuseum.org

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