by MEGAN SMITH
“Norman Rockwell: American Freedom” is the first comprehensive exhibition devoted to Norman Rockwell’s iconic 1943 depictions of FDR’s Four Freedoms.
Thankfulness radiates from American artist Norman Rockwell’s iconic holiday scene, Freedom from Want, in which three generations gather around the dining table to partake in a mid-afternoon meal. The gleaming bird, presented by the family matriarch, is the crowning glory of this feast, accompanied by a covered casserole dish, a plate of celery, cranberry sauce, and a bowl of fruit. Despite this appetizing spread, the people seated at the table do not gaze hungrily at the fare before them; instead, they appear to marvel at one another, rejoicing in the love and togetherness that fill the room. As the work’s title implies, there is no want.
Four freedoms
The 1943 painting traces its inspiration back to the 1941 State of the Union address by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in which he outlined four democratic values that he considered essential to preserve: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. These notions had neither an immediate nor resounding impact on the American public, but 11 months later their significance was transformed by the United States’ entrance into World War II.
Rockwell, a well-established illustrator for the Saturday Evening Post at the time, was eager to lend his talents to the ongoing war efforts. He first pitched his Four Freedoms idea to the Graphic Division of the War Department’s Office of Facts and Figures in May 1942, but the unit was unable to commit financially. He then traveled to Washington, DC, and proposed the series to the Office of War Information (OWI), only to be told, “The last war, you illustrators did the posters. This war, we’re going to use fine arts men, real artists.”
The Museum of Fine Arts – Houston for more