Scholar of Spanish Baroque and Italian art; professor of art history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1940-1972. Wethey's parents were Charles Edwin Wethey and Flora Keck (Wethey). His undergraduate degree, in Romance Languages from Cornell University, was granted in 1923. After a brief time in business, Wethey continued graduate study at Harvard University receiving his M.A. in 1931 and his Ph.D. in art history in 1935. His dissertation, written under Chandler R. Post, was on Gil de Siloe and his school.