Give Thanks This Day

Saying Grace- Norman Rockwell -  1951

 Hold fast to the blessings which God has provided for you.

Yours is not the task to gain them, they are here;

yours is the part of cherishing them.

-J. Reuben Clark

May we all look inward and recognize the great blessings we have in our lives, both great and small. I have so much to be thankful for this year. I will spend part of this day and every day being grateful for all that I have. I have a wonderful family, great friends, a roof over my head and the chance to use my artistic talents every day. Truly the Lord has blessed me. May he bless and be with you all also. Happy Thanksgiving!

A Gift of Rockwell For Father's Day

A Norman Rockwell book. With all the Rockwell titles already on my studio shelf ( I own no fewer than ten Rockwell tomes), you'd think that another one would barely make a ripple on my excitement meter, but you would be wrong. It seems that every new Rockwell book I get, I find something new or the essay holds a new nugget that I had never before heard or thought about.

In short, Rockwell becomes fresh again for me as I see his work through the eyes of others. Telling Stories- Norman Rockwell- from the collections of George Lucas and Steven Speilberg is an enjoyable read not just for the many classic Rockwell paintings that are beautifully reproduced therein, but for the historical and cultural context in which writers Virginia Mecklenburg and Todd McCarthy places them.

I have read many books on Rockwell including his own autobiography but this one put Rockwell's work in a different perspective for me. One in which no previous book had quite been able to do. Time is always an effective filter and maybe it's just that enough time has passed and enough prejudices have been set aside that the public (including the art critic public) can now enjoy the real value of what Rockwell achieved in his more than sixty year career.

Rockwell's body of work represents an accurate snapshot of our culture on canvas done in what most would consider a brilliantly executed fashion. One cannot argue Rockwell's technical prowess (I have long considered his to be among the most finely crafted of any paintings I have seen) so it is nice to see he is getting his due as an artist and storyteller.

I truly believe that in another hundred years or two, when all the abstract expressionism and meaningless constructions that pass for contemporary art these days have faded from memory, Rockwell will still be enjoyed and lauded as one of the icons of twentieth century art.

I am also excited that at least the George Lucas portion of the collection in this book will eventually be on display for all to see as Lucas builds an new museum to house his art collection.

Get Telling Stories-Norman Rockwell here

Santa Claus Comes Tonight!

The Discovery- Norman Rockwell

Hope everyone is ready for Christmas! Everything is wrapped and waiting. If your kids are not teenagers like mine, I hope the secret is still alive and well. Nothing like the magic of a jolly fat man bringing you presents in the middle of the night. Now to get onto food preparation for tonight's Christmas Eve festivities with the family. Have a great one!

American Nostalgia Exhibit

Crimson Harvest- by Greg Newbold; 13.5" x 24" Acrylic

I have been invited to participate in an exhibit celebrating the iconic American themes popularized by Norman Rockwell. The show is titled "American Nostalgia: Contemporary Artists and Illustrators Reinterpret the Traditional Themes of Norman Rockwell" and will run from July 7 to September 25th, 2011 at the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton California. I am one of the forty contemporary artists that have been asked to contribute a couple of pieces to the show. Anytime my work can be mentioned in the same breath as Norman Rockwell, I am pleased. the Museum describes the show as follows:

More than thirty years after his death, iconic American artist Norman Rockwell’s art is still enormously popular. This invitational group exhibition examines the enduring themes represented in the art of Norman Rockwell–patriotism, family and the American ideal–through the works of 40 contemporary artists and illustrators.

More info at The Muck's  website

The Power of Silhouette

Harvest - by Maxfield Parrish

The term silhouette was named after the French government official Etienne de Silhouettte who because of economic crisis in 1759, was forced to imposed harsh economic policies upon the French people, in particular the very wealthy. As a result, his name became synonymous with anything that was done very cheaply, including the making of cut paper portraits.

Silhouette type portraits were popular at the time before the advent of photography mainly because they could be produced quickly and at very little cost. An artist with a modicum of skill could produce a portrait likeness with such basic materials as black card paper and scissors. 

End paper art for Treasure Island - by N.C. Wyeth

One of many Kuppenheimer ads done by J.C. Leyendecker

The best illustrators also understand the power of this simple concept to carry their artwork as evidenced by these examples from some of my favorite Golden Age illustrators.

Rosie the Riveter - by Norman Rockwell

The above Parrish piece reduced to black and white still caries the dramatic intensity of the original

Even when reduced to black and white, these images still retain their readability, narrative content and compositional heft because the artists understood the power of the silhouette.