I Was Andrew Wyeth’s Secret Muse

For more than 15 years, Andrew Wyeth created 250 secret paintings. He hid them from everyone—including his wife, who was also his business manager—in the loft of a millhouse near his home in rural Pennsylvania. When they were discovered, in 1986, they generated a media frenzy that extended well outside the art world. The Helga paintings, as they came to be called, all depicted a single subject: Helga Testorf. Read more: “Helga“ was directed by Jesse Brass. It is part of The Atlantic Selects, an online showcase of short documentaries from independent creators, curated by The Atlantic. Subscribe to The Atlantic on YouTube: