Norman Rockwell (1894-1978)
Girl at Mirror 1954
The Saturday Evening Post cover, March 6, 1954
Oil on canvas
22" x 17"
Norman Rockwell Art Collection Trust

W
atch an interview with Mary Whalen as she shares her experience modeling for Girl at Mirror.
In the biography Norman Rockwell, author Karal Ann Marling explains how Norman Rockwell meticulously drew Jane Russell's likeness from the cover of Movie Spotlights. Rockwell received criticism over suggesting that a little girl's only desire is to become a movie star. Regretfully, he stated "I should not have added the photograph of the movie star. The little girl is not wondering if she looks like the star but just trying to estimate her own charms."

See Girl at Mirror studies and reference photographs.

Listen to the audio tour segment about Girl at Mirror.
About Girl at Mirror

Oil on canvas Painting for The Saturday Evening Post cover, March 6, 1954 Norman Rockwell Art Collection Trust

Girl at Mirror follows a long tradition of fine artists who have pictured a woman contemplating her reflection. George Hughes, fellow Post cover artist, said that a painting by Edouard Manet inspired this painting. Two paintings by other artists stand out as strong candidates, however. Included in Rockwell's reference files are examples of Picasso's Girl at Mirror and Elizabeth Vigee-Lebrun's The Artist's Daughter, each of which could have directly influenced this work.