According to Brandywine River Museum of Art tour guide, Jo Lurquin, Andrew Wyeth used the yolkes of extra-large, white Wawa eggs when mixing his paint, writes Kathleen Brady Shea for the Chadds Ford Live.

The huge impact these eggs had on a number of the famous painter’s most significant works, came from Wyeth’s mastery of tempera technique. As Lurquin explained during a recent tour, the process that Wyeth used involved mixing pigment with distilled water and egg yolk in order to create a paint that is conducive to creating his exacting detail.

In April, anybody who is interested in seeing this painstaking procedure will get the opportunity during Friday tours of Andrew Wyeth’s studio. Artist Terry Wolf, a member of the Society of Tempera Painters, has temporarily set up shop in the studio for the month, and will spend Fridays showing visitors the intricacies of the mixing process.

During one of last Friday’s demonstrations, Wolf broke the yolk of his first egg, forcing him to start over.

“You don’t want any of the white,” he commented as he proceeded to break the second egg, and gently pierce the sac of a complete yolk to allow the yellow liquid to run into a small container. After extracting the yolk, water is added to the mix in proportions that have to be extremely precise to ensure the result is neither runny nor too chalky.

Additional attention also needs to be paid to the painting surface, as ordinary canvas will not work. Wolf said that usually he takes the time to prepare his own boards a process that takes three days. He first applies rabbit skin glue to the boards followed by gesso.

“I just love it,” he enthused, adding jokingly that “doing this keeps me out of bars.”

Read more about Andrew Wyeth and detailed tour times on Chadds Ford Live here, and check out previous VISTA Today coverage of the Brandywine River Art Museum here.