First Impressions – by Liz

 I was home from college for a weekend and decided to share the Brandywine River Museum with a couple of friends who had never visited.   The Brandywine River Museum is home to American art by a number of well-known artists, some of whom lived in and around the surrounding area of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania.  I drove with my friends a short way north on Route One from Longwood Gardens and Kennett Square, to the museum.  The view of the museum from Route One is one of an imposing 3-story brick building—historic looking, which makes sense since it dates back to the Civil War and was once a flour mill.   But once inside, my friends thought it looked completely different. Three floors of contemporary lobby space open up the surrounding landscape with giant, curved glass windows which overlook the river for which the museum is named—the Brandywine.  One of my friends was most interested in seeing the Wyeth art–N.C. (Newell Convers) Wyeth, Andrew Wyeth and Jamie Wyeth which is featured in separate galleries on three different floors of the museum.   Even after seeing examples of three generations of Wyeth paintings, we had differing opinions about which artist we liked best.  We checked out a small gallery of still-life paintings and then some landscape art before deciding to head outside for a bit to explore the riverbank and sat along the river, near a few bronze statues dotting the property, while we soaked in the peaceful atmosphere.

A gorgeous view of the museum’s third floor.

Currently there are a few exhibitions that are a must see. Now until November 17^th hurry in to see the Jamie Wyeth, Rockwell Kent and Monhegan exhibit. This is located on the third floor of the museum adjacent to the Andrew Wyeth Gallery and works by George A. Weymouth and Jamie Wyeth. If you plan to visit the before November 24^th take advantage of our shuttle bus tours to Andrew’s personal studio and N.C’s home and studio. If you are interested in finding out more information about studio and off-site tours I have written more blogs about them in the links below! Hope to see all of you soon!

Two of my good friends, Phoenix and Bill, exploring the museum for the first time!

• Link for planning your visit: http://www.brandywinemuseum.org/mapdir.html
• Links to my blog about our guided shuttle bus studio and home tours: https://brandywineinterns.wordpress.com/2013/09/26/inside-n-c-s-studio/ and https://brandywineinterns.wordpress.com/2013/08/21/a-window-into-andrew-wyeths-world/