"Study For "The Land Of Enchantment"" Lot no. 4775
By Norman Rockwell (1894-1978)
1934
Image 9" x 19", Sheet 15" x 20.25"
Watercolor, ink, and graphite on paper laid to boa
unsigned
REQUEST PRICE
PURCHASE REQUEST
Click any of the images above for additional views.
In the watercolor study for The Land of Enchantment Rockwell portrays a young boy and girl reading books in the foreground, as the characters from their fairy tales and fables inhabit the background. The work is a magnificent tribute to children’s literature and the vivid imaginary world it evokes.
Now hanging in the children’s reading room in the New Rochelle Library in New York, the completed oil painting was featured as a double-page spread in the December 22, 1934 issue of The Saturday Evening Post accompanied by an excerpt of the poem "To Romance" by Lord Byron. It was the first time Rockwell’s work was reproduced in such a large format for the Post. Rockwell donated the painting to the library the following year, in 1935. The artist was a resident of New Rochelle for more than twenty-five years and was a longtime supporter of the library.
The Land of Enchantment was initially commissioned by a wealthy private patron, who wanted a decoration to hang over the mantel in his children’s room. The two children reading in the foreground were to be likenesses of his son and daughter. However, the stock market crash of 1929 led to financial hardship for the patron, who was forced to cancel his order. The Post encouraged Rockwell to continue his work on the painting and develop it into a double-page spread for the publication.
Rockwell was preparing to sail for France, so he took along the sketches that he had already made from models, and painted the artwork in Paris. The pencil grid visible on this finely executed study would have allowed Rockwell to easily enlarge the composition. He enjoyed working in the horizontal format, and at around six feet wide, the final painting was one of his largest. Rockwell recalled taking it to the Curtis Publishing offices in Philadelphia:
“I remember very well walking from the station in Philadelphia over to The Saturday Evening Post, carrying it all the way, a station porter at one end and I at the other. A high cross-wind was blowing. We were all right on the avenues, but when we came to a sidestreet we literally had to ‘tack’ or we would have been blown to the next street.”
Reference: Arthur L. Guptill, Norman Rockwell, Illustrator (New York: Watson-Guptill Publications, 1970), pages 120-21.
Literature:
Arthur L. Guptill, Norman Rockwell, Illustrator, (New York: Watson-Guptill Publications, 1970), 117, 120-21 (illus.).
The Saturday Evening Post, December 22, 1934, pages 18-19 (illus.).
“Parent of golden dreams, Romance!
Auspicious queen of childish joys,
Who lead’st along, in airy dance,
Thy votive train of girls and boys.”
- Byron
Explore related art collections: Studies / Magazine Stories / $100,000 & Above / 1930s / Children
See all original artwork by Norman Rockwell
ABOUT THE ARTIST
The pictures of Norman Perceval Rockwell (1894-1978) were recognized and enjoyed by almost everybody in America. The cover of The Saturday Evening Post was his showcase for over forty years, giving him an audience larger than that of any other artist in history. Over the years, he depicted there a unique collection of Americana, a series of vignettes of remarkable warmth and humor. In addition, he painted a great number of pictures for story illustrations, advertising campaigns, posters, calendars and books.
As his personal contribution during World War II, Rockwell painted the famous “Four Freedoms” posters, symbolizing for millions the war aims as described by President Franklin Roosevelt. One version of his “Freedom of Speech” painting is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Rockwell left high school to attend classes at the National Academy of Design, and later studied under Thomas Fogarty and George Bridgeman at the Art Students League in New York. His two greatest influences were the completely opposite titans Howard Pyle and J.C Leyendecker.
His early illustrations were done for St. Nicholas magazine and other juvenile publications. He sold his first cover painting to the Post in 1916, and ended up doing over 300 more. Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson sat for him for portraits, and he painted other world figures, including Nassar of Egypt and Nehru of India.
An important museum has been established in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where he maintained his studio. Each year, tens of thousands visit the largest collection of his original paintings extant.