Formal Analysis - ‘Christina’s World’ by Andrew Wyeth

'Christina’s World’ by Andrew Wyeth is among my favourite paintings of all time, I remember seeing it at the MoMA gallery in New York and being transfixed by its stark beauty. The work has such a melancholy about it that it really draws you in, I was aware of the painting before I first saw it but seeing it in the flesh really brought home how beautiful and realistic it is. The work is a window into another place (metaphorically speaking) and a window into the mind of the subject Christina Olson. The work isn't blatantly obvious in its meaning and know the meaning behind it really changes  the few on the world, the bleak subdued tone of the landscape inform the viewer it’s not a cheerful painting however the sadness isn't readily explained. The woman lying in the field (Christina) is the first thing you notice, the landscape is bleak and almost empty except the two elements her, and the farm house. Knowing that the subject is trying to crawl to the farmhouse you appreciate why the artist used a low angle on the scene and painted the grass to look like an endless sea creating the effect of distance between Christina and the house.

The work reminds me of growing up and being a small child, I used to go for walks with my grandmother and  her dog in the fields and lanes beyond my house. It brings to mind being small and much closer to the ground than I am now so when I looked across a field it looked like a vast extent of nothing but grass and earth. Knowing the work captures the hopelessness of trying to get home when you are unable it bring to mind the emotion I've felt in my life of homesickness and wanting to be secure when the world is too big. The work serves from my point of view as a visual metaphor for life, because it represents the sadness of feeling alone and insecure but also the misery of not getting what you want even when it’s a simple thing like a roof over your head. I like the work because it captures a narrative and a set of emotions which are universal, also I like it because it’s one of few paintings which I really appreciate for their intricacy. I liked the work a lot when I saw it in the MoMA so when I came home I researched it thoroughly to fully understand it, the more I’ve learned about Christina and Wyeth the more I like it.

The painting has a narrative, the story depicted is of Christina a woman suffering from polio and paralysed from the waist down who has fallen from her wheelchair (which is out of the scene) and is trying to crawl back to the farmhouse in the distance. Christina Olson was a real person and Wyeth witnessed this scene out of his window and decided to paint it, hopefully he went and helped her first. Although Christina is facing away her tense body language shows the turmoil she is in and her efforts to claw and the ground depict desperation. The work depicts in a general sense and feeling of loneliness and desperation which are emotions everyone viewing it can relate to however the work can be seen to have a more direct depiction of the misery which comes with a debilitating disease. The work is called ‘Christina’s World’ a name which reinforces my belief that the artist has used techniques to place the viewer in Christina’s viewpoint. The name seems to come from the idea that this is how Christina sees the world and this is just one situation which expresses her plight.

I think the theme of the work isn't cut and dry, I see it as about loneliness and desperation but also its got the more positive theme of putting the viewer in the less fortunate position. The work lets people bridge the gap between pity and empathy. If the angle was different and we viewed the scene differently we would pity Christina but not really feel her pain, by putting the viewer in Christina’s world they can empathise. The painting is both landscape and portrait, it need both elements to work and be effective, the two elements separately would not be as good as the sum of the parts. The work was create only a short distance from its subject, the scenes inspiration comes from an actual experience but Wyeth used his wife as a model to recreate the scene. The work is highly psychological because affects the way you think by changing your perspective on the world, the work also bring up issues of accepting people with illness or disabilities. The work was started in the late 1940s a time where the world was far less accepting of disability. Perhaps the work is created to draw attention to the trials of people with chronic illness in a time when the social attitude weren't as positive as they are now.

The work is very true to the style of Andrew Wyeth, his work is always starkly realistic and normally comes from real scenes as opposed to imaged ones. HIs work is normally painted in muted tones but is extremely realistic, from a distance the picture looks like a photo because it is some accurate to life.  The work is tempera on a gessoed panel a medium Wyeth uses again because of its tonal variation and flexibility. All in all for numerous reasons this work is one of my favourite pieces in one least favourite mediums, I like it a lot and plan to do my own interruption of the work as an artist study.