Norman Rockwell’s “Telling Stories”

See a new twist on famed American painter Norman Rockwell’s work!  A new exhibition, “Telling Stories” is now open at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.   

 

Rockwell is one of America’s most iconic painters. He had the ability to capture American lifestyle and make a story come alive within a painting.  Norman Rockwell said it best himself: “Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing the America I knew and observed to others who might not have noticed.”

 

What makes this exhibit different from other Norman Rockwell exhibits?  It is the first major exhibit to focus on the connection between Rockwell’s iconic paintings and the films produced by filmmakers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg.  All 57 pieces in the exhibit are from these two men’s personal collections.  Lucas and Spielberg, both widely successful in the film industry, produced films that have become iconic for Americans such as Star Wars,  E.T., Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park.

 

What do these filmmakers have in common with Rockwell?  That is exactly what this exhibit delves into.  The exhibit features a short film with Lucas and Spielberg sharing what appeals to them about Rockwell’s art.  When viewing the works of these three men, shared themes are ever present: unlikely heroes, life in the country and of course imagination and irony. 

 

Below are a few paintings from the collections of Lucas and Spielberg:

 

 

Norman Rockwell, Boy Reading Adventure Story

1923, oil on canvas. Collection of George Lucas

© 1923 SEPS: Licensed by Curtis Publishing, Indpls, IN. All rights reserved.

 

Norman Rockwell, ---And Daniel Boone Comes to Life on the Underwood Portable
1923, oil on canvas. Collection of Steven Spielberg

Artist: Norman Rockwell | Collection of Steven Spielberg | Courtesy SAAM

 

Norman Rockwell, Shadow Artist
1920, oil on canvas. Collection of George Lucas

Artist: Norman Rockwell | Collection of George Lucas | Courtesy SAAM