Christina’s World, 1948
Andrew Wyeth
It was inspired by seeing his neighbor, who suffered from Polio as a child, crawl across a field because she couldn't walk. Before I knew the story behind the painting, I thought the girl was posed in a slightly melodramatic way - looking onward to a promising future. But after knowing the struggle that the girl in the painting faces, the whole meaning of the work changes. Desperation and distance become great cloud-like setbacks.
To me, the painting is symbolic of people in our lives. People we might see a certain way... positive, cheerful, carefree; someone we may take for granted. It is not until we dig deeper, discover their truths, that we can truly see who they are, what they need, and what we can do to help. And it may just be as simple as what Andrew Wyeth did -- just taking notice.
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