bjkeefe: Hey, whaddya know ...

Sunday, July 04, 2010

... a Norman Rockwell painting that is not excessively icky.

Norman Rockwell: Proud Possessor (1940)

From the NYT's slide show here. Article here.

Anonymous said...: You should go to the Rockwell Museum and see lots of non-icky; 8:47 AM, July 05, 2010
Terri said...: Most of Rockwell's narratives are clear. What's the story here? Do these kids know one another? Is the black kid asking for something? What's your take on the image?; 9:43 AM, July 05, 2010
bjkeefe said...: @Anon:

I'm sure you're right. I actually have seen some other stuff of his that doesn't make me reach for the insulin. Here, I was being a bit hyperbolic for effect in my post title -- in part because I didn't want people who have the same general impression of NR to click away as soon as they recognized the artist's style, without taking a closer look at this particular picture.

@Terri:

Agreed -- this picture is harder to be sure about, isn't it?

My impression, purely from looking at the image without knowing anything about it, is that NR was making a comment about haves and have-nots in America, the unwillingness of the former to act to alleviate that problem, and probably also illustrating a larger point about race-based inequities of his day.; 1:30 PM, July 05, 2010

bjkeefe