Norman Rockwell Lithograph "Extra Good Boys and Girls" (Signed)

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Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell Lithograph "Extra Good Boys and Girls" (Signed)
1939

About the Item

"Extra Good Boys and Girls" is a lithograph by Norman Rockwell that was used as a Saturday Evening Post magazine cover in December of 1939. It is an American Genre painting from a particular time in our history when Mother, Apple Pie, the American Flag and Santa Claus were iconic symbols of the American way of life. It was a storybook version that spread a feel-good aura by way of illustrated covers for the Saturday Evening Post. These were the same years that blanketed the crushing Depression and the beginnings of World War II. These illustrations represented a time when people wanted to believe there was something better in the future than what they were currently experiencing and this lithograph is therefore of extraordinary value to a serious collector of Rockwell’s work. It remains a timeless favorite of all Rockwell collectors, no matter what their age. Alternate titles are Santa At The Map and Santa On Ladder With Map. It was the 191st overall of 322 total published Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post covers. Norman Rockwell felt deeply about his work and has stated: “No man with a conscience can just bat out illustrations. He's got to put all his talent and feeling into them! Some people have been kind enough to call me a fine artist. I've always called myself an illustrator. I'm not sure what the difference is. All I know is that whatever type of work I do I try to give it my very best. Art has been my life.” Rockwell was born in New York City in 1894. At 14 he enrolled in art classes at The New York School of Art (formerly The Chase School of Art). Two years later he left high school to study at The National Academy of Design and soon transferred to The Art Students League where he studied with Thomas Fogarty and George Bridgman. Fogarty’s instruction in illustration prepared him for his first commercial commissions. From Bridgman he learned the technical skills on which he relied throughout his long career. Rockwell found success early and painted his first commission of four Christmas cards before his sixteenth birthday. While still in his teens, he was hired as art director of Boys’ Life the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America and began a successful freelance career illustrating a variety of young people’s publications. At age 21, Rockwell’s family moved to New Rochelle, New York, a community whose residents included such famous illustrators as J.C. and Frank Leyendecker and Howard Chandler Christy. There, Rockwell set up a studio with the cartoonist Clyde Forsythe and produced work for such magazines as Life, Literary Digest, and Country Gentleman. In 1916, the 22-year-old Rockwell painted his first cover for The Saturday Evening Post, the magazine considered by Rockwell to be the “greatest show window in America.” Over the next 47 years, another 321 Rockwell covers would appear on the cover of the Post. Also in 1916, Rockwell married Irene O’Connor; they divorced in 1930. The 1930s and 1940s are generally considered to be the most fruitful decades of Rockwell’s career. In 1930 he married Mary Barstow, a schoolteacher, and the couple had three sons, Jarvis, Thomas, and Peter. The family moved to Arlington, Vermont, in 1939, and Rockwell’s work began to reflect small-town American life. In 1943, inspired by President Franklin Roosevelt’s address to Congress, Rockwell painted for Four Freedoms paintings. They were reproduced in four consecutive issues of The Saturday Evening Post with essays by contemporary writers. Rockwell’s interpretations of Freedom of Speech, Freedom to Worship, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear proved to be enormously popular. The works toured the United States in an exhibition that was jointly sponsored by the Post and the U.S. Treasury Department and, through the sale of war bonds, raised more than $130 million for the war effort. Although the Four Freedoms series was a great success, 1943 also brought Rockwell an enormous loss. A fire destroyed his Arlington studio as well as numerous paintings and his collection of historical costumes and props. In 1953, the Rockwell family moved from Arlington, Vermont, to Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Six years later, Mary Barstow Rockwell died unexpectedly. In collaboration with his son Thomas, Rockwell published his autobiography, My Adventures as an Illustrator, in 1960. The Saturday Evening Post carried excerpts from the best-selling book in eight consecutive issues, with Rockwell’s Triple Self-Portrait on the cover of the first. In 1961, Rockwell married Molly Punderson, a retired teacher. Two years later, he ended his 47-year association with The Saturday Evening Post and began to work for Look magazine. During his 10-year association with Look, Rockwell painted pictures illustrating some of his deepest concerns and interests, including civil rights, America’s war on poverty, and the exploration of space. Print without the frame measures 28" h x 22" w.

Creator:
Norman Rockwell (1894 - 1978, American)
Creation Year:
1939
Dimensions:
Height: 34.25 in (87 cm)Width: 28.25 in (71.76 cm)
Medium:
Lithograph
Movement & Style:
American Impressionist
Period:
1930-1939
Condition:
Gallery Location:
Detroit, MI
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU128616729102

Shop All Norman Rockwell

Norman Rockwell

Norman Rockwell is among the most revered painters of the 20th century. His figurative and portrait paintings reflect an innocent and idyllic America described by the artist as "life as I would like it to be." For nearly 50 years, he illustrated the covers of The Saturday Evening Post in a rich and emotive style that gave distinctive personalities to his imagined characters. In total, Norman Rockwell created more than 4,000 works of art over the course of his life.

Rockwell was born in 1894 in New York City. His artistic aspirations took shape early on, and when he was 14 years old, he took classes at the New York School of the Art, which is now the Parsons School of Design. Later, he attended the Art Students League of New York, where he studied under influential painters Thomas Fogarty and George Bridgman. While still a teen, Rockwell became art director of the Boy Scouts of America publication Boys' Life.

At 21, Rockwell moved to New Rochelle, New York, and opened a studio with fellow illustrator Victor Clyde Forsythe. He created illustrations for magazines like Literary Digest and Life before his first cover for The Saturday Evening Post was published when he was 22. In 1939, after moving to Arlington, Vermont, Rockwell pivoted to making the nostalgic paintings of small-town and iconic America for which he is best known — scenes of Christmas dinner, children playing in the street and national treasures like Ruby Bridges and Rosie the Riveter.

In 1943, a speech previously given by President Franklin Roosevelt inspired Rockwell to create his most famous series, “The Four Freedoms,” which was exhibited all over the United States. The series included four pieces entitled Freedom of Speech, Freedom to Worship, Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear.

Rockwell moved with his family to Stockbridge, Massachusetts, in 1953, where he spent the rest of his life. My Adventures as an Illustrator — the autobiography Rockwell wrote with the help of his son, Thomas — was published in 1960. In 1963, Rockwell ceased working with The Saturday Evening Post and started drawing illustrations for Look magazine.

The world’s largest collection of original Rockwell art can be found at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge. The artist was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977, and he passed away peacefully in his home the following year.

On 1stDibs, find a collection of original Norman Rockwell paintings, prints, drawings and other works.