Norman Rockwell: Difference between revisions
Not all of his works were "overly sweet"; some pack a punch. |
Larry Sanger (talk | contribs) Please see neutral point of view and bear in mind that aesthetic evaluations above all need to be qualified and attributed |
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<b>Norman Rockwell</b> (1894-1978) |
<b>Norman Rockwell</b> (1894-1978) American [[painters|painter]], generally considered both patriotic and mainly a commercial painter, though his work enjoyed and continues to enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States. Rockwell is famous for a series of covers for ''The Saturday Evening Post'', notably those painted during the 1940s and 50s, especially the Four Freedoms series (Freedom from Want, Freedom of Speech, Freedom to Worship and Freedom from Fear, from a speech by [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]]) painted in 1943 and later used to promote war bonds and ''Rosie the Riveter'', also 1943. |
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Many of his works appear overly sweet, especially the ''Saturday Evening Post'' covers, and tend |
Many of his works appear to the modern artistic eye as overly sweet, especially the ''Saturday Evening Post'' covers, and tend toward idealistic portrayals of American life. Consequently, Rockwell is not often regarded as a "serious painter" by many contemporary artists, who often regard his work as bourgeois and kitsch. Rockwell sometimes produced images that are powerful and moving on nearly anyone's view, however. One example is ''The Problem We All Live With'', which dealt with the issue of school integration. The painting depicts a young African-American girl walking to school, flanked by white federal marshals, walking past a wall defaced by racist graffiti. It is probably not an image that could have appeared on a magazine cover earlier in Rockwell's career, but ranks among his best-known works today. |
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Born in New York City and educated at the Academy of Design and the Art Student’s League |
Born in New York City and educated at the Academy of Design and the Art Student’s League, Rockwell then worked for the [[BSA]] publication ''Boy’s Life'' before submitting his first successful cover painting to the ''Post'' in 1916. He left the ''Post'' in 1963, having painted 321 covers in total. |
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Revision as of 11:13, 19 February 2002
Norman Rockwell (1894-1978) American painter, generally considered both patriotic and mainly a commercial painter, though his work enjoyed and continues to enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States. Rockwell is famous for a series of covers for The Saturday Evening Post, notably those painted during the 1940s and 50s, especially the Four Freedoms series (Freedom from Want, Freedom of Speech, Freedom to Worship and Freedom from Fear, from a speech by Franklin Delano Roosevelt) painted in 1943 and later used to promote war bonds and Rosie the Riveter, also 1943.
Many of his works appear to the modern artistic eye as overly sweet, especially the Saturday Evening Post covers, and tend toward idealistic portrayals of American life. Consequently, Rockwell is not often regarded as a "serious painter" by many contemporary artists, who often regard his work as bourgeois and kitsch. Rockwell sometimes produced images that are powerful and moving on nearly anyone's view, however. One example is The Problem We All Live With, which dealt with the issue of school integration. The painting depicts a young African-American girl walking to school, flanked by white federal marshals, walking past a wall defaced by racist graffiti. It is probably not an image that could have appeared on a magazine cover earlier in Rockwell's career, but ranks among his best-known works today.
Born in New York City and educated at the Academy of Design and the Art Student’s League, Rockwell then worked for the BSA publication Boy’s Life before submitting his first successful cover painting to the Post in 1916. He left the Post in 1963, having painted 321 covers in total.