Norman Rockwell in Texas

Oh you lucky Texans: a Norman Rockwell exhibition! The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston is showing Norman Rockwell, The Problem We All Live With, until 1 November 2006. The title is taken from the above painting, which shows a pretty 6-year-old black girl looking very dignified between four US Marshals, who are escorting her to her new desegregated school to insure she arrives safely and is allowed entry. Note the word scrawled on the wall behind them. For decades Norman Rockwell's witty and socially aware paintings adorned the covers of Look Magazine and the Saturday Evening Post. His cheerful patriotism may seem old-fashioned today, but it was spot on for World War II. Anyone who dismisses Rockwell as a mere illustrator is an idiot. He was one of the great artists of the 20th Century. If you're Texan, don't miss this exhibition. The rest of us must content ourselves with clicking the title link to visit Curtis Publishing: Rockwell Art Gallery.