About Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell was a well-known American illustrator when he heard President Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech delivered to Congress in 1941. After a lot of thinking, at 3 a.m. on the morning of July 16, 1942, Rockwell sat up in his bed and knew that he was ready to bring Roosevelt’s words to paintings.

He imagined painting the Four Freedoms that depict real people living and learning about the freedoms in their everyday lives. He believed that these paintings could show some of the most crucial issues of his time. His neighbors in Vermont posed for photographs, which he used to create the paintings. Rockwell did pencil outlines first, then charcoal drawings, and lastly color sketches before he would put oil paint brush to canvas.

First, Rockwell took his initial sketches to the Office of War Information in Washington, DC. He was told that they could not use his paintings because they did not think of him as a real artist. Although Rockwell had made his reputation as an illustrator, most of his pictures told stories that he created himself. He did not feel comfortable with the labels, artist or illustrator.

Feeling rejected, on his way home, he stopped in Philadelphia at the offices of the Saturday Evening Post magazine, to see if they might be interested in his Four Freedoms sketches. They said “Yes!” and the Four Freedoms were printed in color in successive issues of the magazine beginning with Freedom of Speech on Feb. 20, 1943.

When Rockwell returned home, he used his sketches to plan large paintings with oil on canvas. First, he painted Freedom of Speech (see reproduction in "Rockwell's Paintings " section of this site), which gave him the worst headaches. He created four different versions until he was pleased. He finally decided that the man speaking at the Town Hall in the painting would be seen from below looking up with his mouth open, talking freely. Rockwell put himself in this scene. You can see him at the far left of the painting with one eye looking out at the viewer. Freedom of Worship (see reproduction) was another nightmare for him because he was so afraid that he might offend someone. Being free to worship includes showing respect for religious differences. He asked himself, “How do you paint freedom to believe?”

After painting Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Worship over and over again in his studio from 1942 to 1943—after seven long months, he finally liked them enough to say that they were completed. His perseverance teaches us how important it is to never give up on your goals. If you believe in something, stay with it until you’ve achieved it.

He had an easier time with Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear. Rockwell said that the Four Freedoms were “serious paintings which sucked the energy right out of me like dredges, leaving me dazed and thoroughly weary.” Later, Rockwell said, “The job was too big for me…It should have been tackled by Michelangelo.” While Rockwell was free to paint in his Vermont studio, America and its allies were fighting to win battles for freedom during World War II.

After the paintings became so popular in the magazine, the government changed its mind and asked to use Rockwell’s paintings as the official posters for what was called the 2nd War Bond Loan Drive. The government sold bonds to raise money for the war. People who bought the bonds got paid back later with interest. Rockwell was thrilled to participate. 

The United States Treasury Department distributed four million copies of Rockwell’s Four Freedoms posters. The government and some businesses across our country asked him to show his paintings at places like department stores where there would be crowds of people who might buy the bonds. During this trip, 1.2 million people in many cities viewed the paintings and $132 million worth of war bonds were sold.

Looking at the Four Freedoms paintings seemed to stir strong feelings about the value of our lives as American citizens and our responsibilities to help people to become free. Looking at them today, you may feel the same way.

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Norman Rockwell Museum
The Norman Rockwell Museum's education programs offer a unique blend of perspectives and are designed to foster inquiry and dialogue. Programs for students - to - scholars to use active learning that is inspirational for people of all abilities and backgrounds. Whatever your age or interest, you'll find that the programs explore how Rockwell's art and visual communication can ignite the imagination, engage the mind and reflect our human experience - past, present, and future.