Andrew Wyeth is one of the last great living American painters. Come to think of it, he has to be one of the greatest American artists ever. His work, so painstakingly detailed at times, so almost emotionally tangible at others, has continued to amaze me ever since I first stumbled upon a book of his watercolors several years ago.
When the Philadelphia Museum of Art put on a Wyeth retrospective last year, I couldn't wait to go. There are so many pieces that I love of the painter's native Chadd's Ford home and surroundings. Of the many art exhibits I have been to over the years, Wyeth's was one of my favorites. Seeing his pictures close up was an incredible experience. On one hand, it's just such an awesome thing to see an image you've admired from afar hanging on a wall in front of you. It's like seeing a dream come to life. On the other hand I thought, "Some people are just so gifted. Thank you for these gifts."
"Marriage" is definitely one of Wyeth's works that I admire so much. It's really just a simple painting of two old people sleeping, but every time I look at it I think, "This is what love in the late stages really looks like." The man and the woman are sleeping, covers pulled up to their necks. The bedroom window is open and outside you can see the cold Pennsylvania countryside at bay. It's certainly metaphorical and really represents all I want out of my life and marriage. When it comes down to it, I want someone to be there for me even in the most unglamorous and uneventful of times... just the two of us fighting the winter that we cannot stop from advancing. There's more love in that image than in most poems and letters a person could write. And I think that's what I really like about Wyeth in the end: He's so good at what he does that he tells you everything about yourself without ever saying a word.
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