Under Sail lithograph by Norman Rockwell 1976

Under Sail is an original limited edition Artists Proof ( A. P. ) lithograph by Norman Rockwell and signed in pencil by the artist. This delightful image shows a young boy who has used a ladder to climb atop a barn and is sitting on a weather vane with the vanes rooster beside him. He is staring out over the town with his cowboy hat in his right hand and the roosters pole in his left dreamily watching the birds in flight in the distance. This original lithograph is framed in a burnished silver frame , white mat and  silver fillet. Published in 1976 on Arches paper  by Atelier Ettinger Inc. NY            It comes with a certificate of authenticity and is in excellent condition.

Norman Rockwell ( 18984 – 1978 ) one of Americas most iconic artists who illustrated covers for The Saturday Evening Post for 47 years with a total of 321 covers.  His depiction of everyday American scenes with an emphasis on the warmth of small town life infused with his particular charm and humor made him a beloved figure in American history. He once said ” Maybe as I grew up and found the world wasn’t the perfect place I thought it to be , I unconsciously decided that if it wasn’t an ideal world, it should be, and so painted only the ideal aspects of it”.  Rockwell also covered important events of the day such as Charles Lindberg’s 1927 crossing of the Atlantic and Neil Armstrong’s 1969 moon landing. He developed a relationship with the Boy Scouts of America  illustrating their calendar which he continued for the rest of his life. In the early 1960’s he left the Post and began doing covers for Look magazine. He focus turned to the important social issues of the country centered on race, poverty and the Vietnam War. The Norman Rockwell Museum was established in his home town of  Stockbridge, Massachusetts where he and he family had lived since 1953. And in 1977 Rockwell was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Gerald Ford. He died a year later November 8,  1978 at his home in Stockbridge, MA.