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Lot Essay
The present work will be included as an addendum work in the Project Norman database created by the Norman Rockwell Museum, Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
The present work is a study for Norman Rockwell’s iconic painting Which One? published on the cover of the November 4th, 1944 edition of The Saturday Evening Post. In 1944, in the middle of World War II, the American public faced a difficult decision in the race for the White House. Democratic incumbent Franklin Delano Roosevelt was running for a fourth consecutive term in the midst of controversy over his foreign policy decisions, while Thomas E. Dewey was the strong challenging Republican with experience as the Governor of New York. As was his practice, the subject and sentiment of Norman Rockwell’s Post cover that month reflected the American public consciousness, with the present image serving as a poignant representation of the questions and concerns than can plague the common citizen during the election season.
In the present work, as in the final painting, Rockwell depicts a single gentleman postponing his choice at the voting booth for a final consideration of the candidates. Under his arm he holds a newspaper that pointedly asks, “Which One?” below photographs of the two politicians, suggesting he has been gathering information up until the moment of truth. Executed with a brilliant level of detail, the man’s quizzical expression exudes the quintessential hint of exaggeration and humor that has become forever associated with the artist’s best works. As Christopher Finch has written of Rockwell’s WWII-era paintings, “What is most important about this period, in relation to his career as an illustrator, is the fact that he was given an opportunity to prove to himself and to others that he was capable of dealing with serious subjects without abandoning the human touch which had always been his trademark.” (Norman Rockwell’s America, New York, 1975, p. 200) Embodying this careful balance, the present work serves as a positive reflection of the nation’s psyche, and a coping mechanism for its viewers, still resonating with voters today as they face their own important moments of decision.
The present work is a study for Norman Rockwell’s iconic painting Which One? published on the cover of the November 4th, 1944 edition of The Saturday Evening Post. In 1944, in the middle of World War II, the American public faced a difficult decision in the race for the White House. Democratic incumbent Franklin Delano Roosevelt was running for a fourth consecutive term in the midst of controversy over his foreign policy decisions, while Thomas E. Dewey was the strong challenging Republican with experience as the Governor of New York. As was his practice, the subject and sentiment of Norman Rockwell’s Post cover that month reflected the American public consciousness, with the present image serving as a poignant representation of the questions and concerns than can plague the common citizen during the election season.
In the present work, as in the final painting, Rockwell depicts a single gentleman postponing his choice at the voting booth for a final consideration of the candidates. Under his arm he holds a newspaper that pointedly asks, “Which One?” below photographs of the two politicians, suggesting he has been gathering information up until the moment of truth. Executed with a brilliant level of detail, the man’s quizzical expression exudes the quintessential hint of exaggeration and humor that has become forever associated with the artist’s best works. As Christopher Finch has written of Rockwell’s WWII-era paintings, “What is most important about this period, in relation to his career as an illustrator, is the fact that he was given an opportunity to prove to himself and to others that he was capable of dealing with serious subjects without abandoning the human touch which had always been his trademark.” (Norman Rockwell’s America, New York, 1975, p. 200) Embodying this careful balance, the present work serves as a positive reflection of the nation’s psyche, and a coping mechanism for its viewers, still resonating with voters today as they face their own important moments of decision.