Podcast #16: Why Study Norman Rockwell
The 2nd artist we’ll study in our spring semester is Norman Rockwell. Who was he? What was his art like and why should we study him?
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Here’s the Highlights:
- Who was Norman Rockwell
- His life: Well know, 4000 pieces of art
- Lived from 1894-1978 (84 years)
- He loved to draw from a young age and went to art school
- Most of his art was created for the Boy Scouts and the Saturday Evening Post
- Historical & Geographical Context: WWI, Depression, WWII, Civil Rights Movement
- What were his paintings like?
- Illustrations- Fine Art world didn’t consider “illustrations” to be “fine art”
- Most were Nostalgic, lighthearted, pleasant – later in life he did some more politically inspired pieces
- Moments in Time, clear focal point (Opposite of Grandma Moses)
- Highly reflective of the culture
- Often humorous
- Why study Norman RockwellSo we understand his art better
- It gives us a better sense of life in that time period
- It helps us understand the importance of human posture in art
- It’s enjoyable
- It inspires us to look more carefully at art on Magazines and in books- value the illustrator
- It inspires us to make art!
- Then we report on our art time over the holidays (39:42)
- I tried out some chalk and oil pastels
- We’re both in love with Faber Castell’s Albrecht Durer Watercolor Pencils, and
- Deanna gets her questions answered about posting her painting of someone else’s painting.
- Last, we announce the winner of our $50 December giveaway! Congrats CCofEriePA! Thanks for posting your photos of RLR inspired art!
Things we mention:
- Van Gogh
- Grandma Moses (mentioned in podcast episode 15 and this earlier blog post)
- Cook’s Illustrated magazine
- Watercolor Pencils
- The Powerful Blue, Red, and Maroon Quilt (photos coming soon!)
- Ridge Light Ranch Lesson Plan about Norman Rockwell
Rockwell’s Art We Mentioned
WikiArt.com is a great place to see most of Rockwell’s paintings. Here are the paintings we looked at in this episode:
- Boy with a Baby Carriage (pictured here)
- They Remembered Me
- Soldier and Conrads
- Stuck Inside
- Rosie the Riveter
- The Problem We All Live With
- Lincoln for the Defense
- The Golden Rule
- The Music Man
- The Runaway
- Doctor
