[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 23 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 23

                   Honoring the life of Andrew Wyeth.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 27, 2009

   Mr. Casey (for himself, Mr. Specter, Ms. Snowe, and Ms. Collins) 
 submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
                   Honoring the life of Andrew Wyeth.

Whereas Andrew Wyeth was one of the most popular American artists of the 
        twentieth century, whose paintings presented to the world his 
        impressions of rural American landscapes and lives;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth was born in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania on July 12, 1917, 
        where he spent much of his life and where today stands the Brandywine 
        River Museum, a museum dedicated to the works of the Wyeth family;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth died the morning of January 16, 2009, at the age of 91, in 
        his home in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania;
Whereas it is the intent of the Senate to recognize and pay tribute to the life 
        of Andrew Wyeth, his passion for painting, his contribution to the world 
        of art, and his deep understanding of the human condition;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth was born the son of famed illustrator N.C. Wyeth and grew 
        up surrounded by artists in an environment that encouraged imagination 
        and free-thinking;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth became an icon who focused his work on family and friends 
        in Chadds Ford and in coastal Maine, where he spent his summers and 
        where he met Christina Olson, the subject of his famed painting 
        ``Christina's World'';
Whereas Andrew Wyeth's paintings were immensely popular among the public but 
        sometimes disparaged by critics for their lack of color and bleak 
        landscapes portraying isolation and alienation;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth's works could be controversial, as they sparked dialogue 
        and disagreement in the art world concerning the natures of realism and 
        modernism;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth was immensely patriotic and an independent thinker who 
        broke with many of his peers on the issues of the day;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth was a beloved figure in Chadds Ford and had his own seat at 
        the corner table of the Chadds Ford Inn, where reproductions of his art 
        line the walls;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963 and the 
        Congressional Gold Medal of Honor in 1988;
Whereas Andrew Wyeth let it be known that he lived to paint and never lost his 
        simplicity and caring for people despite his immense fame and successful 
        career; and
Whereas the passing of Andrew Wyeth is a great loss to the world of art, and his 
        life should be honored with highest praise and appreciation for his 
        paintings which remain with us although he is gone: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes Andrew Wyeth as a treasure of the United 
        States and one of the most popular artists of the twentieth 
        century; and
            (2) recognizes the outstanding contributions of Andrew 
        Wyeth to the art world and to the community of Chadds Ford, 
        Pennsylvania.
                                 <all>