Pope Francis Views Norman Rockwell’s Iconic 'Golden Rule'
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STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — One of America's most iconic artworks, Norman Rockwell's painting "Golden Rule," from the collection of Norman Rockwell Museum, was selected by the United Nations as a centerpiece for its humanitarian message for Pope Francis’ visit with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, at the UN on Friday.
“It is significant that an important work of American art by Norman Rockwell, from our own collection, out of all the museums in the nation and the world, was chosen as the backdrop for the meeting of these two humanitarian leaders,” museum Director Laurie Norton Moffatt said.
"Golden Rule" was part of the public exhibit "We the Peoples: Norman Rockwell’s United Nations," which was displayed for the last three months at UN Headquarters in New York to celebrate the organization’s 70th anniversary, and made possible by the collaboration and support of the United Nations Foundation. It closed last week after being viewed by thousands of visitors.
The UN had requested that the two featured artworks from the exhibition remain on view after the Sept. 15 closing for several important diplomatic tours and celebrations in conjunction with their 70th Anniversary. Rockwell’s "Golden Rule" and "United Nations," the large detailed charcoal drawing and featured piece of the exhibition, were moved to the second floor, adjacent to the Golden Rule mosaic. The mosaic had been created from Rockwell’s image in 1985 and presented as a gift from the United States to the United Nations. This is the first time Rockwell’s painting and the mosaic have ever been on view together.
Earlier this week, the museum’s curatorial staff was deployed to the UN Headquarters in New York, to oversee another reinstallation, to a special location on the highly organized and secured route that Pope Francis would take through the building.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon spoke about the meaning and connection of Norman Rockwell’s art to the United Nations, in his public address at the opening of the exhibition.
“I think it is exceptional that this artist – so anchored in American society – was quite literally drawn to send the message: we belong to the world," he said. “His drawing brings the message of the United Nations home.”
Moffatt said it has been "a privilege and an honor" to work with the United Nations on the exhibit.
"Today's news images of Rockwell’s 'Golden Rule,' with two world leaders dedicated to improving lives around the world, holds special meaning for all of us at the museum," she said. "Three humanitarians together - Norman Rockwell, Ban Ki-moon and Pope Francis.”
Rockwell himself visited the UN in 1952, after he conceived an image of the United Nations as the world’s hope for the future. His deep appreciation for the newly formed organization and its mission inspired a complex work portraying members of the Security Council and 65 people representing the nations of the world.
Researched and developed to the final drawing stage, Rockwell’s "United Nations" never actually made it to canvas, but his desire to reach out to a global community and emphasize the commonality of mankind found its forum in the 1961 painting, "Golden Rule." Numerous archival photographs of Rockwell’s artistic research time at the UN were also on display in the exhibition, and can be viewed on the museum’s exhibition’s website: http://www.nrm.org/digital/un/.
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