Born Betsy James, Wyeth met her husband in 1939, when she was 17, and they soon married. She often modeled for him, but her involvement in his career went much deeper. She suggested subjects for him and critiqued his work, and she became the manager who was responsible for the business success behind her husband’s artistic genius. It was Betsy Wyeth who suggested the creation of the Brandywine River Museum of Art in Chadds Ford, which showcases Andrew Wyeth’s work as well as art created by his illustrator father, N.C. Wyeth, and the Wyeths’ painter son, Jamie Wyeth.
What people said about her
With great sadness, the trustees of the Brandywine announce the death of Betsy James Wyeth on 4/21/20. Betsy was a catalyst in the creation/opening of @branrivermuseum and was a visionary in the worlds of art and architecture. Read more & leave a tribute: https://t.co/zkJmxKIpbDpic.twitter.com/xNcbW2E8H0
— Brandywine Museum of Art (@BrandywineMuse) April 21, 2020
News editor, Legacy.com. Named 2017's Obituary Writer of the Year by the Society of Professional Obituary Writers. Quoted by CNN, the New York Times, and Macleans.
