Home Farm

This is the so-called ‘home farm’ at Winterthur, the former home of Henry Francis du Pont. He and his father were aping 18th- and 19th-century English country houses when they dreamed up Winterthur. It started as a Greek Revival, twelve-room mansion that they bought from a neighbor, and it ended up with 175 rooms. Most notable are the gardens, which are fantastic to visit in all seasons.

They also bought up a few dozen local farms, eventually amassing 2500 acres of arable land. On a British estate, the ‘home farm’ was set aside to produce goods for the manor house, but I don’t know if this one ever served that purpose.

The day I painted this was wicked windy, and my easel kept blowing down. That gave me the opportunity to meet the farmer who manages Winterthur’s farms (and lives in that house). Frankly, I was a little bit envious.

Today, Winterthur is our premier museum of interior design, where you can go to learn more than you ever wanted to know about soup tureens, trestle tables and so much more. I can joke about it, but I’ve visited several times.