“Lowered Expectations,” by David Macaulay, September 19, 2011. Cover illustration from "The New Yorker." Courtesy "The New Yorker," www.newyorker.com. All rights reserved.

Acclaimed Illustrator and Norman Rockwell Museum Artist Laureate David Macaulay has created the cover for this week’s New Yorker. Known for his many architectural books and helping us to learn “the way things work,” Macaulay tackles the timely issue of the United States Postal Service and its uncertain future.

The striking cover features a New York City tour bus passing by the city’s main post office, where a man on a scaffolding is adding additional comments to the building’s famous inscription. On the New Yorker’s website, Macaulay explains that “Every time I come out of Penn Station, I look at that post office with the wonderful phrase ‘Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds…’ I just saw these empty spaces at the end of the building and I thought, ‘Well at least they have space to make corrections.”

Macaulay’s illustration brings to mind his wonderful series of architecture books, which includes Cathedral, Castle, and Mosque; and charming illustrated books Rome Antics and Angelo. His original work was featured in the 2004 Norman Rockwell Museum exhibition Building Books: The Art of David Macaulay, which went on to travel the nation. On Saturday, September 24, 2011, he will receive the Museum’s 2011-2012 Artist Laureate honor during a special awards ceremony from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Click here to learn more about the event, and how to attend and meet the artist (all proceeds support Norman Rockwell Museum). RSVP by September 15, 2011.

In 2000, Norman Rockwell Museum paid tribute to the United States Postal Service with the exhibition Pushing The Envelope: The Art of The Postage Stamp; and in 2005 presented The Art of the “New Yorker:” Eighty Years in the Vanguard. Read the New Yorker. Read the New Yorker blog about the latest cover, and enjoy a series of 14 post office-themed illustrations that have appeared on the venerable publication’s cover since 1927.

Related Links:

www.davidmacaulay.com

Illustrator David Macaulay Honored as Museum’s 2011-2012 Artist Laureate

Building Books: The Art of David Macaulay

“Postal Service Is Nearing Default as Losses Mount,” New York Times, September 4, 2011

"Shuffleton’s Barbershop," Norman Rockwell, 1950. Oil on canvas, 46 1/8” x 43 3/8”. Cover illustration for "The Saturday Evening Post," April 29, 1950. Collection of The Berkshire Museum, Pittsfield, Massachusetts.©1950 SEPS: Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN.

This year Norman Rockwell Museum’s Deputy Director/Chief Curator Stephanie Plunkett was interviewed by Print magazine regarding the Museum’s past, present and future. Her thoughts appear in the August issue of the time-honored publication (on sale now). Here are excerpts from the original interview that she conducted with writer/visual historian Steve Heller:

Before we start talking about the Norman Rockwell Museum, can you tell me how, after getting a masters in illustration, did you join the museum’s ranks?

I came to the MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Program at the School of Visual Arts with a great appreciation for the art of illustration, and for the creators who work behind the scenes to create imagery for mass publication. My father was an illustrator and graphic designer in New York City agencies, and I witnessed the extraordinary dedication that made art for commerce possible. I think I always wanted to find a way to speak publicly about the contributions of artists who work quietly and sometimes anonymously in the name of commerce, but wasn’t quite sure how until I saw an advertisement for employment at the Norman Rockwell Museum. Fortunately, my sixteen years at the Museum has provided many opportunities to do just that.

Norman Rockwell is a fascinatingly complex American figure. His art seems so on the surface, but he had many facets. Is the museum a testament to the complex man or the iconic art – or both?

The Museum was established more than forty years ago, and for the first thirty, curatorial emphasis was placed solely the life and art of Rockwell himself. This was an advantage, as it allowed Museum scholars to tease out, through many years of study, the intricacies and realities of Rockwell’s existence, and the impact of his imagery on the American psyche. Processing his vast archive of reference photography, fan and business correspondence, and personal ledgers and affects, has made important twentieth century artifacts relating to art for commerce available to other commentators as well, greatly advancing the conversation about Rockwell and the field. In presenting his art—at the Museum in Stockbridge, throughout the world, and in publication—we tell Rockwell’s story by presenting a layered view that represents his experiences, his influences and aspirations, the complexities of his world, and the iconic images that are his legacy.

Illustration from "The Sweethearts of Rhythm," Jerry Pinkney, 2009. Featured in the Norman Rockwell Museum exhibition "Witness: The Art of Jerry Pinkney." ©2009 Jerry Pinkney Studio. All rights reserved.

Since you have been at the museum it is safe to say that the depth and breadth of what is covered has expanded. Political art (an exhibition of Steven Brodner), children’s art (an exhibition of Fred Marcellino), and recently a new contemporary art series (launching with Elwood H.
Smith). Two questions: has this been a difficult transition, given the core “Americana” audience?

I am thrilled to report that the Norman Rockwell Museum has exhibited the art of almost 450 historical and contemporary illustrators, and have no doubt that Rockwell would have been incredibly pleased to have his art exhibited among that of his colleagues. He was proud to be among “the band of illustrators who have shown us to ourselves,” and it has been an honor to highlight the accomplishments of these gifted creators, both here in Stockbridge and through traveling exhibitions that make their way to museums throughout the nation.

With regard to your question, there are two significant issues at play. No subject can be truly understood without the benefit of context, and the history of this dynamic American art form is an essential aspect of the story that the Museum aspires to tell. Our commitment toward advancing knowledge and understanding relating to the field is reflected in the recent formation of the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies, the nation’s first scholarly institute focused specifically on the images of mass culture in our world. We are about to award the Rockwell Center’s first fellowships to graduate and post graduate students, who will bring new contextual thinking forward and inspire fresh consideration of the art of illustration in academic institutions and museums. I think your readers will enjoy Rockwell Center Curator Joyce K. Schiller’s essays in visual studies, which can be found at www.rcavs.org.

Another consideration is that Rockwell is now a historical figure, and the audiences who experienced his illustrations for the covers and pages of The Saturday Evening Post and other publications first-hand are dwindling. Engaging with new audiences is essential to the Museum’s future, and changing exhibitions that present diverse aspects of the field help us to do that. Of course, there are those who want to experience only Rockwell when they visit, and the Museum’s name does not reflect our broadened mission, which can be confusing. Public response to the Museum’s illustration exhibitions has been very positive, though, and many noted American institutions that have mounted the illustration-based exhibitions that we have organized, which is both gratifying and important for the Museum and the field.

“Too Many Hats,” Elwood H. Smith, 2010. Featured in the Norman Rockwell Museum "Elwood's World: The Art and Animations of Elwood H. Smith." ©2010 Elwood H. Smith. All rights reserved.

What are your criteria for a “Distinguished Illustrator” in your new series? And who are you looking at for future exhibitions?

We recently mounted Elwood’s World: The Art and Animations of Elwood H. Smith, the first in a series of Distinguished Illustrator exhibitions honoring the unique contributions of contemporary visual communicators, a venture that we are very excited about. The Museum’s curatorial goal is to examine and document the art of influential creators who have made a life-long commitment to the field, and who have inspired new ways of seeing. So many are deserving of recognition, and as you may imagine, our list of potential artists is very long. The decision-making process is both exhilarating and excruciating.

These intimate single-artist installations are designed to reflect both the evolution and the essence of each creator’s vision. Their manageable scale will allow the Museum to feature at least two artists annually, in addition to our larger thematic exhibitions. We hope to make the series broadly accessible through travel to museums and university galleries, and through digital publication. If anyone would like a copy of Elwood Smith’s monograph, to which Steve contributed a fantastic piece, please drop me a line. The amazing illustrator, animator, and book designer, Istvan Banyai, will be the subject of the next Distinguished Illustrator exhibition, on view in early 2012.

Rockwell’s work has become a brand – a commodity too – is there anything taboo in how his work, and the work of others, is presented?

In exhibitions and publications, we strive to present an honest view, despite and because of Rockwell’s legendary status. He suffered through trials and tribulations, as we all do, and often painted his happiness. It’s important for the public to know that beneath all that he has come to represent, Rockwell was deeply human. He accomplished his work with unflinching devotion despite the strains inherent in daily living. His brilliance was countered by depression, divorce, the death of a spouse, artist’s block, and professional concerns, all important aspects of his story that impacted the art that he produced. As a historical figure, he holds up well as a compassionate humanist who was fully committed to his art.

"Triple Self-Portrait," Norman Rockwell, 1959 Oil on canvas, 44 ½” x 34 1/3”. Cover illustration for "The Saturday Evening Post," February 13, 1960. Norman Rockwell Collections. ©1959 SEPS: Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN

Do you think that there can ever be another Rockwell – an artist that captures the heart of the American people? Or is that era over?

I think that Rockwell was the last illustrator to have that kind of reach, as the world of publishing and communications has changed so dramatically. When Rockwell achieved success, print media was the public’s primary source of information and entertainment, and television was not even a glimmer on the horizon. Today our attentions are vastly diverted by a plethora of visual and informational sources, some of which are small enough to hold in the palms of our hands. So many letters in Rockwell’s archive speak to the public’s focus on illustrated images in mid-century America. Correspondence corrects the amount of postage on a package carried by a fictional GI, offers a list of adjustments to the artist’s Four Freedoms, and makes suggestions for future magazine covers. We are continually struck by just how personal it all was, and how difficult it would be to capture the public’s imagination so completely in our time. Still, there is so much exciting work being done, and it is our hope that in this very fast paced world, we can inspire audiences to slow down for a moment and take it in.

Thanks to Steve Heller and the staff at PRINT magazine. Article ©PRINT magazine. All rights reserved.

Q&A with top illustrator Elwood Smith: “Elwood’s World” at the Norman Rockwell Museum
by Ross Rice

Artwork by Elwood Smith. ©Elwood Smith. All rights reserved.

We at Roll have had the pleasure of interviewing Elwood before, in 2007, and found ourselves soon becoming good friends with him and his wife artist/creative partner Maggie Pickard. Since then he’s graced our cover annually with a special holiday theme (thanks again, Elwood!). So when we heard about this show at the Rockwell, well, we just had to make sure we helped get the word out about it. Unfortunately, we all got snowed in on interview day, so we had to do this one on the phone…

This is a pretty big year for you coming up starting with this show at the Norman Rockwell Museum and subsequent tour. Can you tell us a bit about what the show covers, and how it came about?

Though it is a retrospective, it’s not going to be all encompassing. I wanted to keep the early part of the thing short, and have the bulk of my work from the time since I moved to the Hudson Valley. I’ve had some personal fine art shows, and many group shows, but never a one-man show of my commercial work. I’ll turn 70 in May of this year. And I thought: I’d like to have something around my 70th birthday…just in case I’m not around too much longer.

Maggie and I really liked the people at the Norman Rockwell Museum, so I sent a carefully composed email to (NRM deputy director/curator) Stephanie Plunkett, telling her that of all the places I thought of where I would most like to have this show, the Rockwell was my top choice. I know there’s a certain amount of chutzpah in doing that, but I thought that if I didn’t do it, it might not occur to them to ask me in! She wrote back quickly to tell me they would be happy to do it.

Though you have vastly different approaches, you definitely share with Rockwell the ability to tell a larger story with a single image. You’ve mentioned previously enjoying his work as a kid. Was he an influence on you as you developed your craft?

He really was. I never thought of having somebody who would really be a mentor, or “art hero,” whatever term is being used. There were people who influenced me over the years, people I honored and loved, but I’ve sort of gone my own way.

As I look back, when I was a young kid I sorted out those early comics into a hierarchy, with Walt Kelly’s Pogo right at the top. I think any creative person does that—it didn’t take long before I started rating everything. I didn’t have anybody else giving me guidance, like when you read Shakespeare in high school, and (the teacher) tells you why something is great.

When writing some words about the upcoming show, I was recently looking at some Rockwell covers—Saturday Evening Post. There are some really great illustrators who did those covers, but I was right then, and I feel right now, that Rockwell was the top dog. If you look closely, the way that he composed, the way each hand, each gesture….one could say he was too particular. But for a young person, I couldn’t have had a better role model. He set a high standard for construction, composition, beautiful drawing.

The other way he was great was—as you mentioned—his storytelling. It’s just amazing, his painting…he worked from photographs he took himself, almost always using “local yokels” instead of professional models. He was an influence in quite a few ways.

OK, here’s a stupid question, but one that bears repeating anyhow. You’re stylistic approach clearly comes from “old-school” Sunday comics like Krazy Kat, Barney Google, and Pogo. You studied cartooning at an art school in Chicago. Yet you are now considered an “illustrator.” So at what point does a cartoonist become an illustrator?

Well, that’s not a stupid question. If fact, I’m often referred to as a cartoonist, someone even once said I was a “New Yorker cartoonist,” and I had to say, “well, I’ve drawn for The New York Times, not The New Yorker. And I’m really not a cartoonist,” which is when they got really embarrassed!

Nancy Boyer Feindt (Elwood’s hometown high school art teacher, Alpena, Michigan) was one who found the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts cartoon program for me, because at that time I wanted to be a cartoonist. The instructor there had done a comic strip, had minor success, but was not a good teacher. Really nice guy, but he didn’t infuse us with any energy; he’d give an assignment, then just sit there and doze off.

When I finished school there, I needed a job, and in those days the main job people got (coming out of art school) was working for studios. They would hire illustrators, cartoonists, airbrush artists, and that’s how you started out, doing your cartoons in your spare time. I went around from place to place, in Chicago, still working at the supermarket, getting desperate. I landed a job about an hour northwest of Chicago, assistant to the assistant art director. Worked there for a year and a half, and was up for the draft. I joined the National Guard, went through basic training and all that stuff, and when I got back, worked there a little more.

But I wanted to be closer to the big city. By then I was getting the Push Pin Graphic (periodical) from Push Pin Studios, the premier studio with Milton Glaser and Seymour Chwast. It kinda blew my socks off! They did these funny illustrations but there wasn’t much cartoon-style stuff. When I saw this stuff, I thought: I gotta get in the sea, I gotta start getting my feet wet.

So I got a job in Chicago at Marshall Fields department store, and it was the worst six months I ever spent at a job. (Elwood proceeds to describe an almost Dickensian cubicle hell scenario, complete with low pay, hard deadlines and sadistic overseers.)

After that, I worked at an advertising agency for awhile, and then another. But I knew if I didn’t jump into illustration at that time, that I maybe wouldn’t be able to do it. So it was at that point that (the ad agency) let me stay on and use that space, and do layouts off and on. Then I worked for another studio—an actual illustration studio—for a short time before I started freelancing. I’ve been doing that ever since.

Was this the point where you developed your signature old-school comic style, with the deceptively simple line work, round eyeballs, little hands and feet?

Finding a style is very natural to some people, but I was the opposite. And I never had, or never could find one, or didn’t trust myself. And at the time I’m talking about was when I first started illustrating. I was starting to be influenced by Push Pin, and then (the animated Beatles movie) Yellow Submarine came out, those big splashy colors.

It took me a long time to get the style you now know as the Elwood Smith style. I moved to New York City in 1976. I would say it was ‘77 or ’78 when I just didn’t like the style I had, which was more of a cross-hatchy style. And then I re-discovered the old comics, and started buying up originals and old, slightly falling apart hard covered comics of the 30s and 40s. And studied them, even buying the kind of pens they had. I became a really intense fan of that stuff; in a way, that was full circle because that was the stuff that I absorbed as a kid, but did not utilize until 1978, when I really started to get a handle on how to do that. And then that style morphed over the years, (starting with) the big Barney Google feet, big shnozzes, then over time the hands and feet became smaller.

We’ve listed above a sample of your many illustration clients since you made the New York City move, and it’s actually hard to find someone you HAVEN’T drawn for. So tell me, how does a young swashbuckling illustrator take Manhattan, start the ball rolling the way you were able to?

Well, I did it myself at first. But the first couple of years, well, I really hate—I’m being verbose with you right now—but I really hate cold calling. I would have to write down exactly what I was going to say; I would get so frightened, I would get confused. So those first years, they were agony when I had to call.

The surprise for me was when I went out to see these people, the New York people were sweethearts! They cautioned me in Chicago, saying “those New York art directors are gonna eat you for breakfast.” But they were all—OK, there were a few not—but almost all of them would look at my work. And when I first went out there in ’76 I didn’t take any of my published work, because I had my new style. It was all strictly original art put in one of those heavy portfolios you carry around, each one framed carefully. And they would look through it and would give me work, or they were often very generous….almost always they would crank their Rolodex, write down three or four people, whom I’d then go see.

And it took off. I would just be who I was, and people liked that, they were used to reps coming in with a whole sales pitch.

Recently, you’ve been getting more into computer animations using various Flash programs, and collaborations with 3D animator Brian Hoard. Is this the next step in your development, the “animated illustration?”

I did my first animation in Photoshop, just taking a bunch of images and make them work as a bunch of cells, and brought them into iMovie, connecting them. It was fairly crude. I read a lot online about animation, what makes it work, and then I got Toon Boom Studio’s animation program.

I love working with somebody else (like Brian), because they get to do all the hard work! I met Brian was I was working with Toon Boom. The people in Canada who make that program didn’t have very good tutorials, so you would rely on the chat room where you’d talk with (others using the program), one of them was Brian, and he helped me a lot. (At one point) he said to me, “you know, I don’t have that many ideas, and I love your work. If you’d be willing to do the work, I’d be willing to do the animation.” I always have a basketful of ideas, so I said “yeah!”

I think one of the things that’s kept me young and sort of vibrant in this business is a sense of curiosity, of “what is this?” I love the computer. A lot of people my age damn the computer, “it doesn’t have any soul.” I just made animations because it seemed to be interesting. Maggie likes me to make them because they’re promo tools. But right now if I could retire, I would make those little films and animations, I would just do things that tickled my fancy.

So—other than of course the Rockwell exhibit—how are things today in the real “Elwood’s World?”

I‘m busy on a kid’s book assignment I’m working on. And before we came up with the “Elwood’s World” show at the Rockwell Museum, Maggie and I got together with an old friend (and designer) Nancy Davis, and created “Elwood’s World” online, a place people can come, play games, buy merchandise. We recently signed with King Features, who has the world’s largest licensing division. We’ve been feeding them newer original work, plus Maggie’s been going into the vaults; right now the cauldron is bubbling, we’re stirring it. And it could tip over and burn our feet.

As you said earlier, you turn 70 this year, and I swear you—and Maggie too—look at least 15 years younger. Though I suspect your youthfulness is the result of a relentless sense of humor, how about you let us in on your secret…

I have to say first that I’m very lucky that I don’t have any major health ailments—gonna knock on the pencil wood here. Things are going well now, but on the turn of a dime you can have misfortune. So first I have to say that the thing that’s really been great is I’ve reached this very ripe age, and gotten to accomplish a lot of what I wanted to. I have a full head of hair, and it’s dark. Which makes a lot of people think that I’m younger.

I have moments of despair, but I would say in the main that I try to keep the glass half full, and I have a real enthusiasm for learning, it’s really fun. And one thing I have to say (is important) is having dear friends, who make your life so much better. I know it sounds kinda New Age-y—and I loathe New Age-y stuff—but it’s the idea of community. I feel a real affection for my close and more distant friends. It feels good, keeps you lively.

That four and a half mile daily walk probably doesn’t hurt either…

Yeah, and I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t for Maggie! I don’t like exercise at all. But you know you need it.

Original article: www.rollmagazine.com/feb11/articles/art.php

Norman Rockwell answering fan correspondence in his studio; Stockbridge, Massachusetts, c.1971. Photograph attributed to Louie Lamone. Norman Rockwell Museum Collections. © NRELC

STOCKBRIDGE — Norman Rockwell and his work are going viral.

After a decade of planning, scanning and digitizing, The Norman Rockwell Museum is launching ProjectNORMAN — the preservation, archiving and creation of a digital catalogue of Rockwell’s work — today for public use. Now researchers, students and art enthusiasts alike will have online access to the museum’s art and archival collection with the click of a mouse.

“I’m so excited to see it go live online,” said Laurie Norton Moffatt, the director and CEO of the Stockbridge-based Norman Rockwell Museum. “It’s going to transform the museum and access to Rockwell’s work from a global perspective.”

Described as a “labor of love” for the staff, ProjectNORMAN holds the museum’s more than 2,000 works, 20,000 reference photographs, images of more than 3,000 objects from Rockwell’s studio, and each of the 4,000 records and images from Rockwell’s catalogue raisonné, “Norman Rockwell: A Definitive Catalogue.”

Almost $2 million in foundation grants have been raised since 2003 to finance the project, which holds not only Rockwell’s work but also the American illustration art that’s part of the museum’s collection, according to Norton Moffatt.

Users can access the vast online catalogue by going to the museum’s website, www.nrm.org. Click “Browse the Collection” under the “Collections” tab on the top menu bar to get to the project’s home page. Because the work is not public domain, users will be asked to accept terms and conditions before entering the database, according to Corry Kanzenberg, curator of archival collections.

There is no cost to access the collection, but the images are watermarked — meaning the images can be easily viewed but have “Norman Rockwell” lightly written over them in medium-sized letters — and are presented in low resolution to prevent reproductions, Kanzenberg said.

In addition to basic and advanced searching capabilities, the database also hosts a “Highlights” section on the right side of the main page. That serves as a rotating online exhibition space with a topic or search created by curators for the user to browse — it’s like walking through a virtual museum.

Searches are not limited to the names of paintings. Users can search by title, artist, year or even the name of a particular model who posed for Rockwell’s paintings, Kanzenberg said. When the user clicks on an image, all reference photography — the images used by Rockwell to document the painting process or the pictures of the models he used for that particular work — will link to it. It also includes information about the work, detailed bibliography references, links to other work by the artist and the artist’s biographical information.

“If anyone has ever used an online collection from another museum, they will understand how to use this,” Kanzenberg said.

The two- and three-dimensional objects Rockwell used, such as his paintbrushes and the props for his paintings, were also photographed and catalogued.

In essence, it’s a type of one-stop museum browsing for art lovers of all backgrounds and capabilities.

“It’s accessible to people anywhere, anytime,” Norton Moffatt said.

Though the Norman Rockwell Museum is not the first to digitize its collection — locally, the Williams College of Museum of Art and The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute have digital catalogues of their collections — it is rare for a museum of its size to tackle a project this large and see it through to completion, Kanzenberg said.

The process of digitizing the collections was a complicated dance of scanning — some was done in-house, some outsourced for those collections that were either too big or were deteriorating faster than the staff could scan. Then, creating “finding aids” or detailed descriptions for each piece of the collection to make searching the archive easier was also a task.

“For a staff our size to have been able to wrap our arms around a project this size — it’s a model for the nation,” Norton Moffatt said. “There is a palpable feeling of excitement in the museum. We’ve achieved our dream of having the collection available worldwide.”

http://www.berkshireeagle.com/ci_17021361

Related articles:

www.iberkshires.com/blog

www.publicbroadcasting.net/wfcr/new

By Nichole Dupont, iBerkshires Staff
Thursday, December 23, 2010

STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — Inspiration comes from many places. For artist Jerry Pinkney, much of his came from jazz and visits to the countryside as a child.

Jerry Pinkney talks art and inspiration to Lenox Middle School art students at the Norman Rockwell Museum. Photo by Nichole Dupont.

Surrounded by dozens of his brightly-colored, painstakingly detailed illustrations, Pinkney painted a picture of his half-century journey as a beloved American illustrator.

“I showed an interest in drawing very early. I got support from my parents and teachers,” he said to the students. “But when I got to be about your age, at Roosevelt Junior High, there was no art. I am dyslexic and so I really struggled to find that place where I carved my strength from. So, I joined the school orchestra.”

Although playing music was not exactly drawing, Pinkney thrived on the attention that being in the band brought him.

“I had a lot of solos. I wanted to be out front,” he said. “I loved jazz, especially jazz trumpet. I wanted to be cool like Miles Davis; I still want to be cool. It’s about trying to find that part of yourself that needs a voice; it could be art or sports or history. Most of you have some sort of calling or interest. If you follow that dream, there is the potential of arriving at success.”

Pinkney stressed to the students that his success was the result of many elements; support, talent and most importantly years and years of hard work and vision as he continuously meets up with creative challenges.

“The key is hard work, hard work, hard work,” he said. “I often have to re-imagine a fairytale and make it somehow different. I love the idea of solving problems, that’s why I love the idea of books and making multiples of things.”

Pinkney said it takes him on average six to nine months to complete illustrations for a 40-page book but that some require more work than others. According to his wife, children’s book writer Gloria Jean, who also spoke to the students, much of the work that goes into the illustration process is focused on “experiencing things.”
“Jerry has a huge library of reference books and films that he watches,” she said. “Because he can’t always travel to these places that he is writing about but he can go there through books.”

Student and aspiring artist Alice Huth said that she appreciated Pinkney’s message of inspiration and hard work.

“It’s really good to hear from a person, from an artist who has experienced the whole thing,” she said. “He’s truly great at what he does.”

Huth’s classmate and fellow artist Jaclynn Hathaway took to heart the idea of personal experience as a medium for art.

“I always draw based on what I have experienced and what I’ve seen,” she said. “I know that a lot of his work is in children’s books but even at my age I can appreciate how beautiful the work is. Besides, we were all children once.”

“Witness: The Art of Jerry Pinkney” will be on display at the museum through May 30, 2011. For more information visit www.nrm.org or www.jerrypinkneystudio.com.

http://www.iberkshires.com/story/37163/Lenox-Students-Meet-Award-Winning-Illustrator.html?source=arts_block

Related video clip:

http://capitalregion.ynn.com/content/524093/the-art-of-jerry-pinkney/?ap=1&MP4

"Home for Christmas," Norman Rockwell, 1955. Oil on canvas. Norman Rockwell Museum Collections, gift of Sheaffer-Eaton Illustration for Sheaffer Pen Company advertisement. ©NRELC, Niles, IL.

America’s most beloved illustrator, Norman Rockwell, is as synonymous with the holidays as Santa Claus himself.

Not only did he create dozens of illustrations of the jolly ol’ elf in the red suit, Rockwell is known for depicting endless scenes that capture the essence of American holiday traditions from Thanksgiving to Christmas to New Year’s, including his classic “Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas.”

All three celebrations are represented in a special exhibition, “Home for the Holidays,” on view now at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge which looks at the artist’s holiday illustrations eagerly awaited by the public for over six decades.
“All are original illustrations, including many pieces of preliminary work he did for Hallmark,” said Corry Kanzenberg, curator of archival collections at the museum.

The artist’s connection to holiday-inspired art can be traced to his youth, when at the age of 15, a parishioner of his family’s church employed his talents for Christmas card designs. As an adult, Rockwell would become a fixture at Hallmark, the greeting card company that continues to market his holiday illustrations. The Saturday Evening Post typically delegated Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s covers to its most talented and popular illustrators, including Rockwell.

“Although Thanksgiving has already gone by, one of the paintings on display depicts a mother and son peeling potatoes together in their kitchen for the holiday. It’s one of several homecoming images created by Rockwell of American veterans during World War II,” said Kanzenberg about the oil on canvas that ran on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post on Nov. 24, 1945.

One of the many images of Christmas on display includes an oil on canvas from a private collection entitled “Tiny Tim and Bob Cratchit.” It was a cover illustration that ran on The Saturday Evening Post on Dec. 15, 1934.

“It’s one of Rockwell’s many illustrations inspired by Charles Dickens. He often liked to talk about how his dad read Dickens’ tales to him and his brother after they had finished their schoolwork,” said Kanzenberg.

Yet another Saturday Evening Post cover depicted in the exhibition ran on Dec. 19, 1945 just in time for New Year’s Day.

“What we have on display is a very large preliminary drawing for the cover which is actually set in the Wedgwood room of the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. To select the Wedgwood room at the hotel, one of the most expensive places to celebrate New Year’s Eve, shows you just how much Rockwell was in tune with the American culture,” said Kanzenberg.

She said the cover art, entitled “Happy New Year,” depicted “a waiter asleep, the sun rising in the background through the windows, and a party that was obviously over.” However, the version on display features empty champagne bottles and silver buckets left over from the previous night’s celebration. Editors had them removed before the artwork graced the magazine’s cover because they disapproved of covers which alluded to the consumption of alcohol.

While the nostalgic “Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas” – which appeared as a three-page foldout in the December 1967 issue of McCalls – is not part of the special holiday exhibition, it is on view in the museum’s permanent display space.

“It’s one of the most popular in the collection and has really come to symbolize Christmas in America, which is what he intended,” said Kanzenberg.

“Something of interest is that Rockwell actually hoped editors would identify the town in his illustration as Stockbridge, which they did within text in the magazine,” she added.

As for those wondering about Rockwell and his own celebration of the holidays, visitors will learn at the exhibition that he often told reporters he usually would take a half-day off from work on Christmas, despite his busy schedule. Not overly sentimental about the holidays, he viewed turkey carving as “a challenge rather than an invitation,” and once remarked, “I’ve never played Santa Claus in my life. I wouldn’t dare to.”

“Home for the Holidays” will remain on view at the museum through Jan. 16.

http://www.masslive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2010/12/norman_rockwell_museum_celebra.html

“Girl with Picnic Basket Going Swimming,” Norman Rockwell, 1929. Oil on canvas. Cover illustration for “The Saturday Evening Post,” June 15, 1929. ©1929 SEPS: Licensed by Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN. Gift from Jeanie Kull Low and John T.C. Low. From the permanent collection of Norman Rockwell Museum.

Originally broadcast on WAMC Northeast Public Radio, March 3, 2010:

STOCKBRIDGE, MA (WAMC) – As illustration art gains stature in the world of art collectors, original pieces are fetching millions of dollars on the open market. The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge has branded itself as the regional hub for illustration art, and since it’s getting harder and harder for the museum to actually buy original pieces, they have to get creative in order to offer fresh material to their visitors. Our Berkshire Bureau Chief Charlie Deitz reports that each new acquisition has its own story:

Listen to WAMC’s exclusive report

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wamc/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1619092

Most people never meet their heroes. But South River resident Joseph Csatari not only met his idol, he worked side-by-side with him for nearly a decade. And when Norman Rockwell retired, Csatari took his job.

Rockwell, an American icon, created paintings and illustrations of idyllic small-town life that continue to be an emblem of mid-20th century middle-America. Csatari never imagined he would work with Rockwell. But he did for eight years, before taking over Rockwell’s position as the official artist of the Boy Scouts of America after Rockwell retired in 1976.

In commemoration of the Boy Scout’s 100th anniversary on Monday, Csatari and his son, Jeff, have compiled “Norman Rockwell’s Boy Scouts of America.” The book includes 50 of Rockwell’s oil paintings and 37 of Csatari’s illustrations. The text, written by Jeff Csatari, describes the historical context of each work.

Csatari, 80, works in a studio in his home — five blocks from where he grew up. Sunlight streams through skylights in the second-floor room. The studio’s walls are covered with photos of him and Rockwell. Several mugs on Csatari’s desk are packed tight with colored pencils. Globs of paint, some still fresh, lay on a rectangular pallet. Dozens of paintings lean against the walls all around the room.

Sitting in his studio, his voice passionate and just a little wistful, Csatari said he always wanted to be an artist. But his father, a coal miner, was skeptical — at least at first.
“He would say, ‘You want to make a living out of this?,’” Csatari recalled. “And I said, ‘Pop it’ll work out, don’t worry.’”

After graduating from South River High School, Csatari went to the Academy of Arts in Newark. In return for a scholarship, one of his duties was to clean the art galleries. One day, Csatari was examining a large Rockwell painting hanging there. He noticed a brush hair sticking out from a thick stroke of paint. He plucked the hair and kept it in his wallet until the day he met his idol.

Shortly after graduating, Csatari was offered a job in layout department at a popular women’s magazine. But he read in the paper that the Boy Scouts of America were moving their headquarters from New York to North Brunswick. Knowing that Rockwell was their painter, Csatari took a job in the Boy Scouts’ advertising department, hoping he would meet Rockwell.

Csatari shared his admiration for Rockwell with his colleagues. A sympathetic superior offered to make an introduction. Csatari was thrilled. He and Rockwell chatted briefly — perhaps for 15 minutes — about painting, but were interrupted by Rockwell’s driver, who said the artist had to go to another appointment. Rockwell called Csatari the next day to apologize and continue their discussion — the beginning of a lifelong friendship.
Csatari eventually became art director for Boys’ Life, the Boy Scouts magazine, where he worked side-by-side with Rockwell.

Csatari would come up with potential themes for Rockwell’s pieces and make rough sketches. Once Rockwell decided on a theme, Csatari would find models who he’d bring to photo shoots at Rockwell’s Massachusetts studio. As Rockwell aged, Csatari would sometimes help him paint.

Like Rockwell, when Csatari paints, he selects a theme, finds local models, photographs them, sketches the photo and then paints the sketch.

One of the most important things Csatari said he learned from Rockwell was to make sure his models are at ease so their expressions are natural.

“He would make all sorts of faces, roll on the ground, and do anything to relieve tension,” Csatari said of Rockwell.

Csatari still paints every day. Most of his Boy Scout paintings hang in the National Scouting Museum in Irvington, Texas, alongside Rockwell’s 50 Scout paintings.
“Joe has taken the rich tradition started by Norman Rockwell and made it his own,” said Bob Mazzuca, chief executive of the Boy Scouts of America. “Rockwell’s illustrations gave you a snapshot in time — you wanted to be part of the images he created. Csatari’s work (also) makes you feel like you are part of the picture.”

In celebration of the 100th anniversary, one of Csatari’s paintings will be unveiled at a gala event at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., tomorrow. Csatari says he owes it all to Rockwell — who insisted that his protégé call him Norman.
“He was laid back and he was just a very kind and gentle person,” Csatari said. “You did not know you were with celebrity when you were with him.”

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/02/nj_man_compiles_norman.html