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Norman Rockwell's "The Saturday Evening Post" illustration c 1944 SEPS; Licensed by Curtis Publishing Company, Indianapolis, IN, All rights reserved.
Soldier on Leave
194422 x 20 in. (55.9 x 50.8 cm)
Norman Rockwell
United States (New York, NY, 1894 - 1978, Stockbridge, MA)
Object Type:
Painting
Medium and Support:
Oil on canvas
Credit Line:
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Robert M. Boynton
Accession Number:
1974.98
Location: Currently on view
During World War II, Norman Rockwell painted positive and uplifting scenes of the American homefront. Rockwell, America’s most popular illustrator, created "Soldier on Leave" for the [August 12, 1944] cover of the widely-read magazine, 'The Saturday Evening Post.'
[Gallery label text, 2007]
Norman Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post covers have shaped much of the American public’s imagination about what is American about America. This painting appeared on the magazine’s cover on August 12, 1944, in the midst of World War II. Allied Forces had landed on the beaches of France on D-Day, June 6, two months prior to the magazine’s publication date, and there was reason to believe that the war would not go on much longer.
In the meantime, soldiers were continuing to be drafted and wartime romances were intensified by the threat of separation. The scene in Soldier on Leave was a common story: young lovers take what comfort they can from each other in spite of their lack of privacy, knowing their time together is brief.
Rockwell frequently used Vermont neighbors as models for his paintings. This painting is no exception, and to complete the realistic setting, he posed his models in an actual train that was loaned to him by the Rutland Railroad.
[Gallery label text, 2004]
[Gallery label text, 2007]
Norman Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post covers have shaped much of the American public’s imagination about what is American about America. This painting appeared on the magazine’s cover on August 12, 1944, in the midst of World War II. Allied Forces had landed on the beaches of France on D-Day, June 6, two months prior to the magazine’s publication date, and there was reason to believe that the war would not go on much longer.
In the meantime, soldiers were continuing to be drafted and wartime romances were intensified by the threat of separation. The scene in Soldier on Leave was a common story: young lovers take what comfort they can from each other in spite of their lack of privacy, knowing their time together is brief.
Rockwell frequently used Vermont neighbors as models for his paintings. This painting is no exception, and to complete the realistic setting, he posed his models in an actual train that was loaned to him by the Rutland Railroad.
[Gallery label text, 2004]
Marks
Artist's signature, lower center: Norman Rockwell
Provenance
Given to Merrill Boynton by the artist; inherited by his son Robert M. Boynton, Rochester, NY; given to the Gallery in 1974
Additional Images
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Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Recent Acquisitions & Memorial Bequests 1/8/1975 - 2/23/1975
- Norman Rockwell 6/6/1975 - 6/19/1975
- Freedom: Norman Rockwell's Vermont Years 6/7/2003 - 10/19/2003
- Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera 11/7/2009 - 9/17/2011
Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
- Rochester Times-Union. Rochester, New York, 1923-1963.
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Christopher Finch. Norman Rockwell's America. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1975.
- Article Title: Day Coach. Article Scope: Reproduction only. The Saturday Evening Post. Philadelphia, PA: G. Graham Issue Date: August 12, 1944. Figure Number: Cover
- Arthur L. Guptill. Norman Rockwell: Illustrator. New York, NY: Watson-Guptill Publications, 1970.
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Thomas S. Buechner. Norman Rockwell: Artist and Illustrator. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1970.
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. The Saturday Evening Post Norman Rockwell Review. Indianapolis, IN: Curtis Publishing Company, 1979.
- Article Author: Marling, Karal Ann. Article Title: Norman Rockwell: Soldier on Leave. Article Scope: Chapter and reproduction. Marjorie B. Searl, ed. Seeing America: painting and sculpture from the collection of the Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2006. Page Number: 265-267
- Ron Schick. Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera . New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company, 2009.
- Article Scope: Catalogue Raisonné entry and reproduction. Laurie Norton Moffatt. Norman Rockwell: A Definitive Catalogue. Stockbridge, MA: Norman Rockwell Museum, 1986. Volume Number: 1
- Elizabeth Miles Montgomery. Norman Rockwell. New York, NY: Gallery Books, 1989.
- (585) Magazine. Rochester, NY: 585 Publishing
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Marjorie Searl and Lu Harper. The Memorial Art Gallery: 100 Years. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2013.
Portfolio List
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This object is a member of the following portfolios:
Web Links
See links to web pages and lesson plans
Seeing America Inservice
Materials from a teacher in-service presentation Spring 2008
Seeing America
Chapter on Norman Rockwell's Soldier on Leave, written by Karal Ann Marling.
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