Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009)

Siri Erickson is the daughter of George Erickson, who Andrew Wyeth first encountered in the spring of 1967 with his wife, Betsy, while returning from their home in Cushing, Maine on a back road from nearby Thomaston. Upon meeting her, Wyeth was immediately taken by her mature yet innocent countenance. He recalls, "With Siri, you suddenly get this change of such an invigorating, zestful, powerful phenomenon. Here was something bursting forth, like spring coming through the ground. In a way Siri was never a figure to be painted, but more a burst of life." (as quoted in A. Wyeth, Andrew Wyeth: Autobiography, Boston, Massachusetts, 1995, p. 86) The Erickson family would remain a source of inspiration for Wyeth for approximately ten years after they met.

This drawing will be included in Betsy James Wyeth's forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's work.