Norman Rockwell 1894-1978

Maxwell Galleries, San Francisco, California
Betty Engelhart, California, 1955
By descent in the family to the present owner

 

The Saturday Evening Post, July 25, 1942, illustrated in color on the cover
Thomas S. Buechner, Norman Rockwell: Artist and Illustrator, New York, 1970, no. 395, illustrated
Christopher Finch, Norman Rockwell's America, New York, 1975, no. 255

Laurie Norton Moffat, Norman Rockwell: A Definitive Catalogue, Vol. I, Stockbridge, Massachusetts, 1986, no. C398, p. 151, illustrated p. 150

Very good condition, unlined; dime size area of inpainting in upper left soldier's arm, and some dots and dashes of retouching along edges and above front pew.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Norman and Mary Rockwell moved to the small New England town of Arlington, Vermont in 1939. Rockwell's new neighbors made little fuss over their famous resident as they were accustomed to living amongst artistic celebrity – the artist Grandma Moses and the composer Charles Ruggles both lived nearby. Rockwell was quickly accepted into the community and thought of as an unpretentious, considerate neighbor. According to Marjorie Brush, whose entire family eventually modeled for Rockwell " 'He was one of us ...He never put on airs.' "(as quoted in Susan E. Meyer, Norman Rockwell's People, New York, 1981, p.122).  Always ready to serve when asked to pose for a new illustration, the denizens of Arlington provided a rich and varied cast of characters from which Rockwell could select.  Everyone was excited to get the casting call from Rockwell. " 'It made you feel important,' said Doris Crofut Wright'" (as quoted in Susan E. Meyer, Norman Rockwell's People, New York, 1981, p.122), who modeled for a favorite 1948 Saturday Evening Post cover called The Gossips.

 

The first Saturday Evening Post Cover featuring Norman Rockwell's fictional soldier, Willie Gillis, was published on October 4, 1941. "I had conceived of the idea of a series of Post covers depicting the army experiences of a young civilian, sort of an innocent fellow who suddenly found himself caught up in a completely strange life" (Norman Rockwell, Norman Rockwell: My Adventures as an Illustrator, New York, 1994, p.326-327).  Rockwell asked Robert Otis Buck, a local Arlington boy whom he had spotted at a West Arlington square dance, to be his model. Buck had the fresh-faced innocent look Rockwell wanted for the part and had been exempted from the draft, which meant he'd be around long enough for Rockwell to complete the series he was planning on the life of soldier. It was Rockwell's wife, Mary, who came up with Rockwell's fictional soldier's name. She devised the moniker Willie Gillis after a character named Wee Willie Winkie in a book she had read to their children.

 

Soon after the first cover of the Post appeared depicting Willie carrying a food package and being closely followed by a group of fellow soldiers, his character would become America's favorite GI, appearing eleven times on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post from October 1941 until October 1946. Willie Gillis in Church, published July 25, 1942, was the sixth cover.  "Although he had been exempted from the draft, Bob Buck felt he could not simply stay at home while a war was going on.  To his dismay, Rockwell lost his Willie Gillis in 1943, when Buck enlisted as a naval aviator and flew off to the Pacific.  Lacking a real model, the illustrator was forced to improvise if he wanted to keep the series going. In the next cover, he used photographs of Bob Buck" (Susan E. Meyer, Norman Rockwell's People, New York, 1981, p.123).

 

"Most of the pictures I did during the war took their subjects from the civilian wartime scene—the armchair general, women war workers, the ration boards. That was what I knew about and what I painted best"(Norman Rockwell, Norman Rockwell: My Adventures as an Illustrator, New York, 1994, p.328).  According to Thomas Hoving, "One reason for Rockwell's success may be that he was strongly linked to the art form that was sweeping the world in the war years and just afterward.  Like a movie director, he blocked out the moves of his 'actors' according to a script and 'shot' them for prosperity"(Maureen Hart Hennessey and Anne Knutson, Norman Rockwell: Pictures for the American People, New York, 1999, p.30).