Recently I have been typing up different articles from the nine part series 'The Painters Influence' from 1982 issues of Leisure Painter. I have found this extremely insightful and really interesting - it’s amazing leaning about these different artists and finding out what made them tick, how they worked, what they enjoyed and things of that nature. Probably I’m quite nosy and love finding out more about people! The Andrew Wyeth article in the April issue of 1982 is most probably my favourite in the series, mainly because of the amazing and inspiring quotes he came out with in the article/interview. When he was explaining how people view his work he said this, “They are attracted by the realism but soon begin to feel the abstraction.” which I thought was a fascinating way to put it. What I also like about Wyeth is how he describes the way he paints and the rawness of his personality. In some ways I feel that I can relate to Andrew Wyeth in the way that he hates people watching him work, but I find, as an art student in a class of 75, this proves to be quite difficult! Painting is so personal to Andrew Wyeth that he never lets anyone watch him at work. He does not want to be conscious of himself – he 'would like to paint without existing if that were possible.’ I am obviously not as extreme as Wyeth but I sometimes get very self-conscious when people walk past and take a peek at my work! The idea of forgetting about what you are doing to then create a work of art is quite bizarre, but then again he does make a point, sometimes when I forget about what I’m doing I seem to stumble upon a happy accident in my work that makes it look quite a lot better (much to my relief). “Art to me is seeing. I think you have to use your eyes as well as your emotions, and one without the other just doesn’t work. That’s my art” Overall Wyeth is a character to say the least but most of all he is an amazing, inspiring artist. Who would you say is the most inspiring artist to you? Millie