American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell (Remastered)

Norman Rockwell was born in New York City in 89 though urban dwellers his family spent many summers in our heaven he said was the months on the farm it had a lot to do with what I painted later on his father often read Dickens in the evenings and Rockwell would draw pictures of the different characters he said after I got to know something about myself I found that I didn't want to do anything else but draw Rockwell quit high school to attend the Art Students League there his rigorous training as a fine artist included classes in anatomy and illustration technique he employed models costumes and props success came early at seventeen Rockwell became art director for boy's life the Boy Scouts of America journal publishers hired him for books and magazines for ambitious illustrators the pinnacle of success was the cover of The Saturday Evening Post paintings of children caught in humorous situations earned Rockwell his first post cover on May 20th 1916 he was 22 years old that same year he married Irene O'Connor shown here as his model serving stateside in the Navy during World War one he continued at paint sharpening his depictions of heroes and the commonplace in the 20s Rockwell's career took off for American magazines and advertisers he had no equal the four color press breathed new life into his mass-produced illustrations calendars and advertisements in 1926 The Post ran its first four color cover a Rockwell painting [Music] Rockwell's work featured themes he would return to again and again celebrating the commonplace change and invention honoring the American spirit tradition and the past [Music] during the Depression The Saturday Evening Post insisted on light-hearted covers in 1929 Norman's marriage to Irene ended the following year he met and married Mary Barstow a schoolteacher they had three sons Peter Thomas and Jarvis happy in his personal life rock will endure two professional crisis in 1932 he traveled to Europe and experimented with modernism commissions for two stories Tom Sawyer and a biography of Louisa May Alcott renewed his enthusiasm for illustration in 1939 the Rockwell's moved to Arlington Vermont where Rockwell began to paint small-town life more consistently but the horizon was dark when America went to war so did Norman Rockwell on canvas he depicted the homefront and the misadventures of a small-town recruit [Music] in 1943 when President Roosevelt outlined the four freedoms that Americans were fighting for rockwell found a compelling way to help the war effort he said i'll express the ideas in simple everyday scenes take them out of the noble language of the proclamation and put them in terms everybody can understand first its freedom of speech and expression second is freedom of every question to worship God in his own way said freedom from one thought is freedom from fear the paintings ran in the post and then toward the u.s. in the most successful war bond drive ever when peace returned in 1945 Rockwell joined his countrymen and celebrating [Music] America was on the move and so was Norman Rockwell's world a world of families and station wagons and suburban homes [Music] in 1953 the Rockwell's moved to Stockbridge Massachusetts Stockbridge he said is the best of America the best of New England I know everybody in Stockbridge in 1959 Mary Rockwell died two years later at the age of 67 Rockwell married Mollie Punderson a retired teacher he'd met in a local poetry class he was starting a new chapter in both his personal and professional life Rockwell had begun to capture American leaders in portrait Rockwell's 1960 portrait of John F Kennedy was used again in the memorial issue after the president's assassination it was Rockwell's final cover for the post during the 60s Rockwell's primary focus was current events and social issues his social commentary for Look magazine was fearless and unblinking [Music] he embraced the idealism and courage of a nation charting its future Norman Rockwell chronicled the American century as no one else did his works number in the thousands images of a nation's evolution with extraordinary mass appeal in a changing world he was a reassuring guide technology fascinated Americans and Rockwell shared that fascination Henry Ford sold Model T's by the millions and Rockwell loved to show the automobiles impact for better and for worse Rockwell also came of age with man flight from the first person to fly the Atlantic to the dawn of commercial air travel to man's adventures in space he captured it all he celebrated our thirst for entertainment in all of its forms from the national pastime to Hollywood to the debye of television Rockwell captured our rites of passage with wit and wisdom his subtlest observations addressed complex social issues [Music] Rockwell's look back with pride at our rich national and literary heritage in family tree rockwell imagines an american lineage unfettered by class or ethnicity linking past and future rockwell said i was showing the america i knew and observed to others who might not have noticed his i for everyday drama and his devotion to detail guided his creative process he strived for authenticity in his settings and props he collected all manner of clothes and costumes at first he used professional models later the camera allowed him to use anyone who could hold still for a picture he recruited family and friends and scores of neighbors he had a knack for finding just the right face and then seeing how high the eyebrows could go [Music] Rockwell's was both coach and model using his own elastic face to demonstrate expressions rockwell said meeting deadlines and thinking up ideas are the scourges of an illustrators life his subjects varied but his process remained the same he took photographs sometimes by the hundred tinkering with lighting posing and reposing models isolating elements of the scene from these came charcoal sketches usually the size of the final painting at this point he analyzed the composition and tones and solved technical problems color studies showed him how his choices would play on the newsstand finally surrounded by all his references he'd set to work on the final painting [Music] the Rockwell's greatly admired the old masters as well as contemporary artists he said the great band of illustrators have shown us to ourselves I am proud to be of their company the kind of thing I like to do I know it isn't it isn't the highest form of art there's no doubt in the world about that and I know it better than anybody else I love to tell stories and pictures the stories of first thing and the last that isn't what a fine art man goes for but I go for it and I just love to do it that way though he died in 1978 Rockwell's reputation has remained strong continually growing today the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge Massachusetts welcomes 200,000 visitors a year some come to remember some to discover his studio where he created many of his most beloved works now stands on the museum grounds Norman Rockwell left us with images of and for the American people reminding us to believe in ourselves honor the past embrace the future and see ourselves as he did with warmth and compassion [Music] you [Music] you

Channel: Norman Rockwell Museum

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Keywords: Norman Rockwell Museum, Norman Rockwell

Id: qcV-b2aSt_I

Length: 11min 46sec (706 seconds)

Published: Tue Dec 12 2017