Norman Rockwell (American, 1894-1978). Homecoming, 1961. Oil on canvas. 44 x 33 inches (111.8 x 83.8 cm). Signed lower r...

Description

Norman Rockwell (American, 1894-1978)
Homecoming, 1961
Oil on canvas
44 x 33 inches (111.8 x 83.8 cm)
Signed lower right: Norman / Rockwell

Property from the BSA Settlement Trust, Sold for the Benefit of Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse

EXHIBITED:
National Scouting Museum, Murray, Kentucky, n.d.

LITERATURE:
Boy Scouts of America Calendar, Brown & Bigelow Co., Saint Paul, Minnesota, 1961, illustrated;
Boys' Life Magazine, The Boy Scouts of America, February 1961, cover;
W. Hillcourt, Norman Rockwell's World of Scouting, New York, 1977, p. 140, illustrated;
M. Moline, Norman Rockwell Encyclopedia, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1979, pp. 15, 228-9, fig. 8-45, illustrated;
L.N. Moffatt, Norman Rockwell: A Definitive Catalogue, Vol. I, Stockbridge, Massachusetts, 1986, p. 285, no. A82, illustrated;
J. Csatari, Norman Rockwell's Boy Scouts of America, New York, 2009, pp. 79, illustrated.

Some of Norman Rockwell's most iconic images are homecomings. From private moments of a man reunited with his dog (Pals, 1924), to communal welcomes of returning soldiers (Homecoming GI, 1945), reunions provide an emotional backdrop for joy, love, relief, and pride. As is often the case with Rockwell, these themes are frequently paired with service, showing the work of individuals away from their homes and families to strengthen and protect their community.

In Homecoming, Rockwell imagines a return somewhere between the public and the personal. In the entryway of a typical family home in Rockwell's America, we find a young son back from the wilderness with his Boy Scout Troop. On his chest is the First Class Scout emblem, around his neck, the red, white, and blue Den Chief service award. From the boy's shoulder patch, we can see the scene is set in Stockbridge Massachusetts, Norman Rockwell's own home for the last 25 years of his life.

Walking stick and bag in hand, he beams at his proud father. As we watch, this private moment is joyfully interrupted as family and four legged friends bound down the stairs to greet this young man. He was returned to his neighborhood, changed by the responsibilities of leadership among his peers. Back home, he stands a little taller, almost as tall as his father. In a moment, his Cub Scout little brother will reach the bottom of the stairs and proudly look up at him.

Norman Rockwell's collaboration with the Boy Scouts of America lasted for 64 years. In their organization he saw many of the ideals his own work inspires, acts of service, kindness, and community. In Homecoming Marine (1945), a young man back from the war sits in a circle of men, young and old, who listen to stories of his experiences. With Homecoming, the lesson is in miniature, with the leadership learned in the Scouts modeled for the younger brother, inspiring him to take up the mantel and become a positive influence for his own cohort.

Rockwell said of his own work "as I grew up and found the world wasn't the perfectly pleasant place I had thought it to be, I unconsciously decided that, even if it wasn't an ideal world, it should be and painted only the ideal aspects of it". His paintings create symbolic scenes of virtuous behavior to model that behavior for the communities of his audience. In Homecoming he is one with the Scouts, creating another role model for a better future.

Opening Bid: $100,000


More information about Norman Rockwell. See also: Rockwell, Norman, Rockwell, Norman Perceval Artist.

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