Newell Convers Wyeth (1882-1945), better known as N. C. Wyeth, was an American artist and illustrator. Born in Needham, Massachusetts, he attended Mechanics Arts School, the Massachusetts Normal Arts School, the Eric Pape School of Art, and Howard Pyle's School of Art in Wilmington, Delaware. During his studies he worked with Pyle himself, as well as with artists George L. Noyes and Charles W. Reed.
Wyeth's first commission as an illustrator was the February 21, 1903 cover of The Saturday Evening Post, for which he drew a bucking bronco, but others were quick to follow, and Wyeth shortly became recognized as one of the foremost American illustrators of his day. Over his career he illustrated editions of classic American children's books ( Treasure Island, Kidnaped, Robin Hood, Last of the Mohicans ), and his work frequently appeared in prominent periodicals including Century, Harper's Monthly, Ladies' Home Journal, McClure's, Outing, and Scribner's . Other work included advertisements, posters, calendars, murals, and many other formats.
Wyeth was a member of the National Academy, the Society of Illustrators, the Philadelphia Water Color Club, the Fellowship of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Philadelphia Art Alliance, the Chester County Art Association, and the Wilmington Society of Fine Arts. In June 1945 he received an honorary master of arts degree from Bowdoin College. His work is held by museums across the country; in particular, the Brandywine River Museum in Wyeth's home town of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania has a large collection of his work, as does Maine's Portland Museum of Art in Portland and Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland.
Several of N.C. Wyeth's children and grandchildren became artists as well. N.C.'s son Andrew and Andrew's son James "Jamie" Browning Wyeth, both noted painters in their own right, are represented in the collection as well.
From the guide to the James M. Albright Collection Relating to N. C. Wyeth, 1908-2009, (Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries)
