Norman Rockwell Museum facts for kids
Norman Rockwell Museum main entrance
(August 2005) |
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| Established | April 3, 1993 (current building) |
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| Location | Stockbridge, Massachusetts |
| Type | Art museum |
| Key holdings | Four Freedoms, Norman Rockwell Archives |
| Architect | Robert A. M. Stern |
| Nearest parking | free parking onsite |
The Norman Rockwell Museum is an art museum located in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, in the United States. This museum is all about the amazing art of Norman Rockwell. It holds the biggest collection of his original artworks anywhere in the world. The museum also shows special exhibits that travel from other places. These exhibits often feature other great American illustrators.
Contents
History of the Museum
The Norman Rockwell Museum first opened in 1969. It was founded in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, which is where Rockwell lived for the last 25 years of his life. The museum was first located on Main Street in an old building called the Old Corner House.
After 24 years, the museum moved to its current, larger home. The new building opened its doors to the public on April 3, 1993. A famous architect named Robert A. M. Stern designed this building. He is known for his classic and beautiful building styles.
What You Can See: The Collection
The museum has a huge collection of Norman Rockwell's art. It includes 574 original paintings and drawings by him. But that's not all! The museum also keeps the Norman Rockwell Archives. This is a collection of over 100,000 items. These items include old photographs, fan mail Rockwell received, and many business papers.
In 2014, the Famous Artists School gave its archives to the museum. Norman Rockwell was one of the artists who helped start this school in 1948. The donated archives include many of Rockwell's early drawings. These drawings show how he worked on his art.
Some of the famous artworks by Rockwell that you can see at the museum include:
- Boy with Baby Carriage, painted in 1916
- No Swimming, painted in 1921
- Girl Reading the Post, painted in 1941. Rockwell gave this painting to Walt Disney. Later, Walt Disney's daughter, Diane Disney Miller, gave it to the museum in 2000.
- Four Freedoms, a series of four paintings from 1943. These paintings are:
- Going and Coming, painted in 1947
- Christmas Homecoming, painted in 1948
- Day in the Life of a Little Girl, painted in 1952
- Girl at Mirror, painted in 1954
- Art Critic, painted in 1955
- Marriage License, painted in 1955
- The Runaway, painted in 1958
- Family Tree, painted in 1959
- The Problem We All Live With, painted in 1963
- The Peace Corps (JFK's Bold Legacy), painted in 1966
- Home for Christmas (Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas), painted in 1967
The museum is also home to the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies. This is a special research center. It focuses on studying American illustration art.
Awards and Special Gifts
The Norman Rockwell Museum has received important awards. In 2008, the museum was given the National Humanities Medal. This award came from the National Endowment for the Humanities. It recognized the museum's great work in sharing American culture.
In 2016, the museum received a large gift of $1.5 million. This money came from the George Lucas Family Foundation. George Lucas is famous for creating Star Wars. This gift helps the museum's digital learning team. They use it to create cool online experiences for visitors.
More to Explore
- List of single-artist museums
