Norman Rockwell Museum Receives National Humanities Medal
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It was one of nine recipients nationwide and the only museum among the winners.
The award was presented by President Bush to the museum's director and chief executive officer, Laurie Norton Moffatt, at a ceremony held Monday at the White House. (Norton Moffatt is second from right in the picture above.)
In his citation, Bush noted, "Norman Rockwell Museum is being recognized for studying and honoring the life, work, and ideals of an icon of American art. The museum has been the careful curator of the archives, illustrations, and benevolent spirit Norman Rockwell bequeathed to the nation."
Moffatt, director for 22 years, said the museum was deeply honored by the award.
"Norman Rockwell's great gift was to capture on canvas our common humanity and crystallize universal feelings through his sensitive depictions of life’s fleeting moments," she said. "He was unsurpassed in illuminating the concerns and joys of everyday Americans. For 40 years, it has been the museum's great pleasure to contribute to the field of American visual studies by exploring the art of Norman Rockwell and the illustrators who preceded and followed him."
Fittingly, the medallion presented to Norton Moffatt at the White House was designed by illustrator and former medal winner David Macaulay — one of more than 400 illustrators whose work has been presented by Norman Rockwell Museum.
"I am delighted that the Norman Rockwell Museum has received the 2008 National Humanities Medal," said National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman Bruce Cole. "Norman Rockwell's work is an essential part of American art and the 20th-century American experience, and the museum's work to preserve the legacy of this iconic American artist is truly deserving of this honor."
The National Humanities Medal, inaugurated in 1997, honors individuals or groups whose work has deepened the nation's understanding of the humanities, broadened Americans' engagement with the humanities, or helped preserve and expand Americans' access to important resources in the field. Up to 12 medals can be awarded each year.
Other recipients of the 2008 National Humanities Medal include: Gabor S. Boritt, scholar and Civil War historian; Richard Brookhiser, biographer and historian; Harold Holzer, scholar and Civil War historian; Myron Magnet, journalist and author; Albert Marrin, children’s book author; Milton J. Rosenberg, radio show host and scholar; Thomas A. Saunders III and Jordan Horner Saunders, philanthropists; Robert H. Smith, philanthropist; and the John Templeton Foundation.
Past recipients of the National Humanities Medal include Cynthia Ozick, John Updike, Fouad Ajami, Toni Morrison, Jim Lehrer, John Rawls, Barbara Kingsolver, Garrison Keillor, Studs Terkel, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Iowa Writers' Workshop.
For remarks by first lady Laura Bush and video of the event, click here.
Top photo courtesy Whitehouse.gov:President Bush and Laura Bush stand with the recipients of the 2008 National Humanities Medal in the Blue Room at the White House on Monday, Nov., 17, 2008. Pictured from left, Thomas A. Saunders III, president, and Jordan Horner Saunders, Board of Directors, North Shore Long Island Jewish Health Systems; Albert Marrin, author; Richard Brookhiser, Senior Editor, National Review; Harold Holzer, Senior Vice President for External Affairs, Metropolitan Museum of Art; Gabor S. Boritt, Director, Civil War Institute, Gettysburg College; Milton J. Rosenberg, WGN Radio Chicago; Myron Magnet, editor, City Journal; Adair Wakefield Margo, Presidential Citizen Medal recipient; Robert H. Smith, president, Vornado/Charles E. Smith; Laurie Norton, Director and CEO, Norman Rockwell Museum; Bruce Cole, Presidential Citizen Medal recipient. White House photo by Chris Greenberg
