Spielberg/Lucas Rockwell exhibition

Telling Stories, an exhibition of Norman Rockwell art owned by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, has just opened at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington (it goes on until January 2, 2011) and a few articles have appeared speaking to the two men about the iconic American artist.

Take a look at the Smithsonian's website for an excellent slideshow of the men's works plus information how the collection came about.

Telling Stories is the first major exhibition to explore in-depth the connections between Norman Rockwell’s iconic images of American life and the movies. Two of America’s best-known modern filmmakers—George Lucas and Steven Spielberg—recognized a kindred spirit in Rockwell and formed significant collections of his work. Rockwell’s paintings and the films of Lucas and Spielberg evoke love of country, small town values, children growing up, unlikely heroes, acts of imagination and life’s ironies.

Rockwell was a masterful storyteller who could distill a narrative into a single frame. His pictures tell stories about the adventure of growing up, of individuals rising up to face personal challenges, the glamour of Hollywood and the importance of tolerance in American life. He created his pictures with strategies similar to those used by filmmakers.

The exhibition is based on new research into Rockwell, his work and the relationships between the artist and the movies. It showcases fifty-seven major Rockwell paintings and drawings from these private collections.

A 12-minute film, co-produced by the museum and filmmaker Laurent Bouzereau, will be shown continuously in the exhibition galleries. It features interviews with Lucas and Spielberg that reveal their insights into Rockwell’s art and why certain works appealed to them.

The LA Times spoke to Spielberg and Lucas On June 27 and they discussed his influence on their work.

Spielberg picks "ET" as the movie he's made that's most closely connected to Rockwell in sensibility.

"I certainly thought a lot about Rockwell when I was making 'E.T.,'" he says.

"'E.T.' I think comes closest to Rockwell's America, because it's centered on a family in need of repairs, and there's such a hopefulness there. But that's where it stops — I don't think Rockwell has a single alien in his repertoire."

So would someone who knew both filmmakers walking through the Smithsonian galleries be able to guess which pictures belong to Lucas and which to Spielberg?

"Maybe not," says Spielberg. "George and I have been best friends since the '60s, and we're so similar in so many ways."

Lucas agreed, for the most part. "We have the same tastes, the same feelings, the same sensibilities. Looking at one artist, we tend toward the same thing," he says. "That's why we were so compatible making movies together."

There's only one real difference when it comes to Rockwell, Lucas offers. "If it's a more expensive, important painting, it's probably Steven's."

CBS carried a report on the collection on July 4, and their website also has a slideshow with quotes from Steven Spielberg about Rockwell's painting Boy on a High Dive, which usually hangs in his office.


When asked if it were his favorite Rockwell painting, Spielberg said, "Well, let's put it this way: This is the Rockwell that, every time I'm ready to make a movie, every time I'm ready to commit to direct a movie, that's me - that's the feeling in my gut, before I say 'yes' to a picture. Because every movie is like looking off a three-meter diving board, every one."

Finally, you can view a BBC video about the news report on the exhibition here.