Brandywine River Museum re-opens Kuerner Farm for public tours
(February 2005 #005)

For Immediate Release

CHADDS FORD, PA - Beginning April 1, 2005, the Brandywine River Museum re-opens the historic Kuerner Farm for educational tours. 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 found subjects in its people, animals, buildings and landscapes for nearly 1,000 works of art. Guided tours of the farm allows visitors to explore Andrew Wyeth's art and view areas of the property depicted in many of his works. 

Through November 20, tours are offered at timed intervals, Wednesday through Sunday. The tour fee is $5 per person in addition to museum admission. Tours 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 parents' 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), Evening at Kuerners (1970), Young Bull (1960), Spring Fed (1967), and Overflow (1978). Reproductions of these works can 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. After an extensive restoration effort that coincided with the Conservancy's $25 million facilities expansion project, the Kuerner Farm opened to the public for educational tours in 2004. 

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 paintings. Since its opening exhibition in 1971, the museum has introduced millions of visitors to the Brandywine Valley's rich artistic heritage.

Located on U.S. Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, the Brandywine River Museum is open daily, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except Christmas Day. Admission is $8 for adults; $5 for seniors ages 65 and over, students with I.D., and children ages 6 to 12; and free for children under six and Brandywine Conservancy members. For more information, please call 610-388-2700 or visit the museum's web site at www.brandywinemuseum.org.

Media Contacts: Halsey Spruance or Jennifer Maguire at 610-388-8337

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