Peter C. Andrews – In Memoriam

We are saddened to learn that Peter C. Andrews passed away on Wednesday, August 24 at the age of 96. He and his wife Joan were such fundamental patrons of our museum on so many levels. Peter had a quiet presence, always cheerful and supportive, never wanting the spotlight—yet providing sage advice instrumental to the birth of the Charles Burchfield Center in 1966 and its impressive growth into today’s Burchfield Penney Art Center.

This short synopsis of Peter Andrews’ philanthropy hopefully provides insight into some of the ways we personally connected with him. His generosity with Joan and their family benefitted many fine and performing arts organizations in our community as well as the Buffalo Zoological Society and the Smithsonian’s National Zoo, to name just a few.

The story begins before our museum was founded. In April 1963, the Upton Hall Gallery at the State University College at Buffalo, (as they were called then) presented one of the most significant exhibitions of Charles E. Burchfield’s career. December Storm was one of 46 major works presented in Charles Burchfield: Recent Paintings. It had been lent by the Rehn Gallery in New York. Joan and Peter Andrews quickly acquired the painting. After living with it for more than a year, they decided to share it with the public by donating it to the College—a very generous gesture that eventually would stimulate the creation of a museum named after the artist. Burchfield was positively thrilled by the Andrews’ donation and celebratory dinner, writing in his Journals on November 24, 1964:

Dinner at the College in honor of myself and Peter Andrews (who has donated my “December Storm” to the College — which is the hope of all concerned will be the nucleus of a “Burchfield Center” at Buffalo — Another warmly human affair — After the unveiling — Ken Winebrenner read aloud his foreword to the catalogue of my show in 1963 at the college — while slides (in color) were projected onto a screen — I was in a state of euphoria.

In January 1965, Burchfield met with Susie and Joe Walker (his New York attorney) to advise him on his will and to discuss the college’s idea about creating “a ‘Burchfield Art Center’.” Edna M. Lindemann met them for lunch at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. Encouraged, she showed them President Paul G. Bulger’s office in Rockwell Hall where December Storm was hanging and they looked at the library, which could be converted from three large rooms into one, “as a possible location for the Art Center” with “a fine view of the Albright-Knox across the street–” Even at this point Edna said some people “felt eventually it ought to be a separate building on campus)–”

In a letter to Joe Walker in February 1965, Burchfield hinted “at a ‘Burchfield Center’ becoming the final repository of my works ‘for educational purposes’ –,” but he postponed a commitment while he prepared for another exhibition at Upton Hall Gallery, this one a 20-year survey of his drawings (Charles Burchfield: Drawings 1945/1965) held April 28 – May 16, 1965. Then he got cold feet and wrote a letter to College President Paul Bulger on July 12, 1965, saying he felt it would generate too much distracting publicity, besides being inappropriate to launch a museum in his name while he was alive. Supportively he added, “Nothing is changed about my feeling toward the college; I want Buffalo to be the final repository for my memorabilia and other things, and the College is the logical place.”

Fortunately, the founders were persistent in getting him to change his mind. Dressed in a tuxedo, Charles Burchfield cut the ribbon officially opening the Charles Burchfield Center on December 9, 1966. He was joined by his wife, Bertha, and other members of their family, to celebrate with friends from the campus, community, and government in a festive event. Because of the generosity of Joan and Peter Andrews, December Storm (1941-60) became the first painting for the collection of the Charles Burchfield Center. As one of Burchfield’s most profound paintings, December Storm can be read as an allegory for hope in the face of war, the power of nature, the redemptive glory of spiritual beliefs, and a visual equivalent to musical masterworks. At the inauguration, Burchfield donated seven studies for December Storm that underpin the significance of the painting and its symbolism, as well as highlight the idea of building the collection together.

During the inaugural ceremony President Bulger read congratulatory letters that were sent on behalf of President Lyndon B. Johnson and Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller. Those letters were printed in the inaugural catalogue, as well as sentiments by Dr. Bulger, Gordon Smith, who was Director of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, and John I. H. Baur, who at the time was Associate Director of the Whitney Museum of American Art. D. Kenneth Winebrenner was appointed Chairman of the Burchfield Center [advisory] Committee and Edna M. Lindemann as Curator.

As man of the hour, Burchfield accepted the honors and playfully joked that Dr. Bulger did not know the difference between a flicker and a woodpecker. After his comments, they were joined by Donald Voltz in presenting the first copy of the December Storm poster to Joan and Peter Andrews because they had generously donated the painting, making it the cornerstone of the Burchfield Collection which has since grown to enormous proportions. Today the collection and archives contain around 750 objects ranging from masterworks to doodles, plus the Charles E. Burchfield Foundation Archives donated in 2006 which contain approximately 25,000 studies, seminal texts, and archival documentation that make the Burchfield Penney Art Center the world’s most comprehensive study center for research.

In more recent years, we received additional Burchfield works, including The White Tower, c. 1940-42, given by Peter C. Andrews in memory of Joan K. Andrews in 2017. It features the former General Electric Tower built in 1912, itself inspired by the 1901 Pan-American Exposition’s Electric Tower. In 1941 Burchfield wrote: “I am constantly finding new material in Buffalo. Last winter I made a painting of Washington St. in which the Electrical Bldg. figures prominently (one of the finest buildings in Buffalo or anywhere.)” In 2018, the Center received three more Burchfield works as the gift of Peter C. Andrews and Joan K. Andrews, aligning with their mutual donation plans. This included two watercolors: Heat Waves (1932) and New Moon in December (1965), as well as Back Alley (1921), a scene from his hometown in Salem, Ohio.

For nearly sixty years, Peter and Joan Andrews were advocates for the work of Edna M. Lindemann, crediting her for the motivation in nearly all their gifts. In addition to artwork, they provided financial support in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for different initiatives. In 2013, the Burchfield Penney Art Center began an Artist-in-Residence program specifically for researchers developing a discourse inspired by the work of Charles E. Burchfield. It was funded by an endowment established in memory of the founding curator/director Edna M. Lindemann with support from Peter C. and Joan Andrews. We owe such a debt of gratitude to this dynamic, loving couple. We will miss their presence and will celebrate with the greater community all the ways they enriched our lives.

Nancy Weekly

Burchfield Scholar, Head of Collections & Charles Cary Rumsey Curator

Burchfield Penney Art Center