Andy Stewart Now: Why Martha’s Ex-Husband Is Finally Breaking His Silence

If you’ve watched the Netflix documentary Martha, you probably have a very specific image of Andy Stewart in your head. It isn't exactly a flattering one. Martha Stewart doesn't hold back, calling her ex-husband a "piece of s***" and detailing a marriage defined by bitterness, infidelity, and a cold, silent ending.

But there are two sides to every divorce. Especially one that has been simmering in the public eye for nearly forty years.

So, where is Andy Stewart now?

He isn't hiding in the shadows, though he certainly isn't looking for a reality TV deal. At 86 years old, Andrew Stewart has built a life that is almost the polar opposite of the polished, hyper-commercialized world of his ex-wife. He’s a publisher, a naturalist, and, according to his current wife, a man who has finally found the peace that eluded him during the Turkey Hill years.

The Quiet Life of a Publishing Titan

Andy Stewart didn't just disappear after the 1990 divorce. He went back to what he knew best: books.

People forget that Andy was the one who actually helped launch Martha’s career. He was the president of the prestigious Harry N. Abrams publishing house. He was the one who hired Martha to cater a book release party where she met the publisher who would eventually commission Entertaining.

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Today, Andrew holds the title of Publisher Emeritus at Fieldstone Publishing.

He isn't grinding away in a corner office in Midtown Manhattan anymore. Instead, he lives a relatively quiet life focused on nature photography and conservation. He’s traded the frantic energy of the 1980s lifestyle boom for the stillness of the outdoors. It’s a transition that seems to have suited him. While Martha is busy posting thirst traps on Instagram and hanging out with Snoop Dogg, Andy is more likely to be found with a camera in his hand, tracking birds or documenting the landscape.

Why the Silence Broke in 2024 and 2025

For decades, Andy Stewart was the man who wouldn't talk. He famously obtained a court order after the divorce to prevent Martha from communicating with him. He didn't give tell-all interviews. He didn't write a "Mommie Dearest" style rebuttal when Martha talked about him in the press.

That changed with the release of the Netflix documentary.

The film was a massive hit, but it painted Andy as the primary villain in Martha's origin story. It focused heavily on his alleged affairs, including one with Martha's former assistant, Robyn Fairclough (whom he later married and subsequently divorced).

This time, the "gentle, soft-spoken" man—as his current wife, Shyla Nelson Stewart, describes him—had enough.

The Shyla Nelson Stewart Statement

In late 2024, Shyla Nelson Stewart issued a blistering statement on Facebook that went viral. She didn't just defend Andy; she went on the offensive. She described their marriage as "painful and abusive," but notably, she was referring to Andy's time with Martha.

"While Andy quietly moved on and forward with his life, it appears that Martha continues to publicly relitigate the marriage," Shyla wrote.

This was a pivot point. For the first time, the public saw Andy Stewart not as a ghost from the past, but as a husband and father who was being protected by his family. Shyla, who is the CEO of Fieldstone Publishing, made it clear that the man portrayed on screen—the one Martha claims "betrayed her on her own property"—is not the man who exists today.

A Complicated Family Tree

When we talk about Andy Stewart now, we have to look at the family he built after the wreckage of the 1980s.

1. Alexis Stewart: His daughter with Martha. Their relationship has been notoriously strained for years. Alexis has been open about the "hands-off" parenting she experienced, though she has often been more critical of Martha than Andy in her own public writings.
2. Robyn Fairclough: His second wife. The marriage was controversial because she was Martha's assistant. It didn't last.
3. Shyla Nelson Stewart: His third and current wife. They have been together for over a decade, having met as colleagues. Together, they share a blended family that includes five children and several grandchildren.

It’s a big, complex life. Honestly, it’s the kind of life that doesn't fit into a tidy 90-minute documentary focused on a single person's brand.

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The "Abuse" Allegations: A New Perspective

One of the most shocking elements of the recent news cycle surrounding Andy is the use of the word "abusive."

In the documentary, Martha is the victim. She talks about the pain of his cheating. She talks about the coldness of the divorce. However, the counter-narrative from Andy’s camp suggests a different kind of toxicity. His supporters describe a marriage where he was constantly criticized and belittled as Martha's ambition grew.

It’s a classic "he-said, she-said," but with a forty-year lag. Andy's choice to remain "publisher emeritus" and stay out of the limelight suggests he has no interest in winning a PR war. He just wants to be left alone.

What You Can Learn from the Andy Stewart Story

There’s a weirdly practical lesson in the saga of Andy Stewart now. It’s about the "exit."

Most people in his position would have cashed in. He could have written a memoir that would have been a guaranteed bestseller. He could have gone on the talk show circuit. Instead, he chose a path of "strategic disappearance."

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• Prioritize your current peace over past grievances. Andy didn't respond to Martha for 30 years because he didn't want her in his head.
• Let your work speak for itself. Even after the divorce, he remained a respected figure in the world of high-end art and lifestyle publishing.
• The "Second Act" is real. You can be the villain in someone else's story and still be the hero in your own home.

If you're looking for Andy Stewart today, don't look on social media. Don't look for him in the front row of New York Fashion Week. He’s likely in a forest somewhere, waiting for the light to hit a tree just right so he can take a photo.

He’s moved on. Maybe it's time for the rest of us to let him.

To get a better sense of how this drama started, you can look into the history of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, the publishing house he founded that revolutionized how we look at "coffee table" books. Understanding his professional eye for detail explains a lot about why he was both the perfect partner for Martha and, eventually, the person most likely to clash with her.

Next Steps: If you want to see the other side of the story, watch the Martha documentary on Netflix, but keep Shyla Nelson Stewart’s 2024 Facebook rebuttal open on your phone while you do. It provides a necessary lens of skepticism. You might also want to explore the catalog of Fieldstone Publishing to see the kind of work Andy values today—it is far more focused on the "avocational naturalist" side of his personality than the high-society world he left behind.