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July Issue 2005
SC State Museum in Columbia, SC, Offers Works by Norman Rockwell - America's Artist
There's
exciting news for art fans! A major exhibit representing the work
of Norman Rockwell, considered by many to be America's greatest
artist, will open July 29, 2005 at the South Carolina State Museum
in Columbia, SC. The exhibition will be on view in the Museum's
Lipscomb Gallery through Jan. 29, 2006.
Norman Rockwell's America will feature all 323 of the covers the great illustrator painted for the historic Saturday Evening Post, plus 40 original drawings, at least six original paintings and numerous three-dimensional artifacts featuring Rockwell's art, from a rock and roll album cover to a 1960s-era Boy Scout manual.
In addition, Museum guests can see 22 lithographs and an Academy Award-winning documentary narrated by Rockwell himself.
The museum predicts the exhibit to have mass appeal, because Rockwell's warm, reverent and often humorous portraits showed American life in a simpler, gentler time.
"Rockwell's illustrations
narrated the culture of America during the 20th century"
said Curator of Art Paul Matheny.
The exhibit also will feature a life-size model of the artist
at work on his famous self-portrait, and some giant Saturday
Evening Post covers with cut-out faces, which guests may take
photographs with.
Why was Rockwell so wildly popular? Matheny explains it this way: "His signature style of painting, matched with his humor and sensitivity to certain everyday events and broader issues, connected with a large portion of the population. Considering that, and the amount of time he spent creating images that are part of the popular culture magnifies his recognition within the broader community."
Among the original paintings is one Rockwell did while living in Charleston during his stint in the Navy during World War I, where he created several other Post covers that dealt with the Navy and many other illustrations for the Navy's newsletter Float and Ashore, which will also be represented in the exhibition.
Norman Rockwell's America is brought to South Carolina courtesy of the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA. The drawings are courtesy of the Massachusetts Mutual Collection of the Connecticut Valley Historical Museum in Springfield, MA.
Media sponsors for the
exhibit include B-106.7 FM and Lamar Advertising.
Admission to this prestigious exhibit is $5 for adults, $3 for
children ages 3-11 in addition to regular museum admission.
For further information check our SC Institutional Gallery listings, call 803/898-4921 or at (www.museum.state.sc.us).
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