Spring Training

This week went by fast, and seemed have a common thread... at least when it came to my day job.

Coming up for air... ©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

It actually started late last week, as I received a call from a writer with The Detroit Free Press; he was looking for a comment from Norman Rockwell Museum about Jackie Wells, a woman whose portrait Norman Rockwell had painted during his time in Massachusetts. It was around the late 1950s when Rockwell started attending Peggy Best's Sketch Club in Stockbridge, and one of the models the class was to paint/draw from life was Ms. Wells. Not being one of the illustrator's commercial works it seemed a rather obscure inquiry, but having been at the Museum for so many years, it didn't take me long to know exactly who the reporter was referring to.

Wells' portrait is one of the few nudes that Rockwell is known to have created during this mature point in his career; the fact that the model was African-American also makes it stand out during a time when few of the subjects he depicted for the conservative Saturday Evening Post featured people of color (they actually denied him that opportunity). I enjoyed speaking with this reporter, who made me consider how the work prefaced Rockwell's depiction of more diverse subjects during the following decade—I felt I had a lot to offer in terms of thoughtful reflection, and it was interesting to learn about how the model herself went on to inspire people (particularly those battling cancer in the Detroit area). 

Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), "The Rookie (Red Sox
Locker Room)," 1957. Norman Rockwell Museum
Digital Collections. ©SEPS: Curtis Publishing,
Indianapolis, IN

This week began with the news that two of the models for Rockwell's humorous Saturday Evening Post cover, "The Rookie (Red Sox Locker Room)" had been celebrated as guests of honor at Boston's Fenway Park. The occasion was to highlight the upcoming Christie's auction of the painting, and what better place than the landmark stadium used by the Red Sox? I knew the painting was to be displayed this week at Fenway, but had I know that the two living models—Sherm Safford and Frank Sullivan—would also be there, I might have insisted on attending. 

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Safford a couple times; the first being my August 2011 lecture at the George Eastman House on the topic of my videotaped oral histories with Rockwell models. Safford was the main character, "the rookie" in the 1957 painting, and a high school student from Pittsfield when the artist called on him to pose; he now lives in my hometown of Rochester, New York, and was kind enough to do a live interview with me during the lecture. We have kept in touch, and reconnected during the news about the upcoming auction.

I called Safford the day after the Fenway event, after seeing articles about him and Sullivan (a former Red Sox pitcher) during the event. Interestingly enough, the two had never met before, as Rockwell posed Safford separately from the Sox players who also traveled from Boston to his Stockbridge studio. It sounds like he and Sullivan a grand time at Fenway, and it's always nice to learn how these former models are treated. I had been meaning to get in touch with Sullivan, who now lives in Hawaii, and the event made me realize that there was no time like the present.

I gave the Red Sox Hall of Famer a call, inviting him to visit the Museum in Stockbridge if he had the opportunity during his week-long visit in Boston. Unfortunately he was not able, so I inquired about the idea of meeting him in Beantown to record his story, to which he was agreeable. It seemed like a worthwhile pursuit, since a videotaped interview with this former Major Leaguer would add to our important collection of historical recordings, and Boston is a hell of a lot closer than Hawaii.

Cutting to the chase, it didn't happen. During the time it took to seek approval on the meeting, Sullivan went ahead and made other plans (sometimes I wonder if I misunderstand the organization's needs or expectations). Too bad, because the research I conducted on him seemed interesting, and I enjoyed our brief chats on the phone. We might still have the opportunity to talk down the road, but I imagine this may have been my last window to do so in-person. Certainly the news of the upcoming sale of Sullivan's painting will be keeping me busy in the weeks to come.

Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), "Willie Gillis in Convoy," 1941.
©Norman Rockwell Family Agency. Courtesy of Sotheby's.

At the same time, out of nowhere, I received an inquiry about another painting going up for auction this month. This time it was a work I wasn't really familiar with, at least not in finished form. In 1941, Rockwell created a new illustration for his popular Willie Gillis series for the Post. Centered around the escapades of the fictional World War II recruit, I knew the series and had even interviewed the original model Bob Buck; I also knew that there was one unpublished illustration for the series that existed as a detailed charcoal study (the image in question).  What I learned was that Rockwell had also completed a fully rendered oil on canvas painting of "Willie Gillis in Convoy," and that it had been in the possession of Gardner High School since the 1950s. A beautifully executed work, this was quite the discovery, and a nice story about how the town is looking to auction off the work for needed funds to support a school scholarship.

Lo and behold, I'm doing more radio and print interviews, and on the front page of today's Boston Globe, talking about the painting and Rockwell's lasting legacy. It was a nice feeling to see my name and title appear so prominently in this major metropolitan newspaper, and one of the other interviews has been circulating through national publications courtesy of The Associated Press.

It felt good to offer my insight and interest for all of these intriguing stories... so why did I end the day feeling largely unfulfilled at work? 

Catching it while I can...
Photo ©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

My "moment of Zen" this past week was found away from my desk, running around photographing and filming the spring flowers starting to bloom on our campus. With all my other obligations, it is hard not to feel self-conscious about taking some time to attend to my own creativity. I'm not sure some of my colleagues get it, but it does require special focus to get it right, even for projects intended to benefit the Museum. The magnolia trees are beautiful but fleeting, so I knew I had a short window of opportunity to capture them; the idea is to include a few shots in a planned promotional video highlighting the Museum's year-round offerings... it was nice to give myself the time, and there must be a way to operate similarly in the coming months... who knows what the following day will bring? 

Media Collection:

"Rockwell Painting Kept in Storage in Gardner Heads to Auction," Boston Globe, May 8, 2014

"Norman Rockwell Painting Found at Gardner High School Heads To Auction," WBZ-Radio, May 8, 2014

"Adventurous Spirit of Woman Who Posed for Norman Rockwell Inspires Cancer Survivors," Detroit Free Press, May 6, 2014

"Rockwell Painting Shown at Fenway," Associated Press, May 5, 2014