Norman Rockwell @ Tacoma Art Museum

I think I talked about First Thursdays in Seattle awhile back ... like maybe in January?  Anyways, most of the museums in Seattle offer free admission on the first Thursday of the month.  Likewise, in Tacoma, most museums offer free admission on the third Thursday of every month.  I didn't really pay much attention to the Tacoma museums because Tacoma is far away, but I read in Seattle Weekly about a Norman Rockwell exhibit at the Tacoma Art Museum.  And the exhibit was huge ... so J. and I decided to jump in the car and head to Tacoma on the third Thursday in April.

I am certainly not an art critic, nor would I say I love art ... usually museums make me tired.  But, seeing these works in person was truly amazing.  Rockwell was so creative and such a great painter ... there was so much detail in every painting.  He said that he wanted people to see something new every time they looked at one of his Saturday Evening Post covers and I truly think you could look at the cover a million times and not see everything.  I would love to own some of his pieces one day.  How cool would it be to find some in your parents or grandparents attic?  Some of the covers in the the exhibit even had their mailing labels still affixed to them ... it was so neat to see where these covers came from!  New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Georgia, Alabama, and even Indiana!

We couldn't take pictures in the exhibit but here are some of my favorite Rockwell works: 

J. and I decided this was the world's first creepy man ... eavesdropping on a bench with a little dog in a sweater!  We loved it:

Overheard Lovers

I also love this one ... the disheveled looking girl, the black eye, how you can just barely make out the word "Principal" on the door:

Shiner

So sweet ... and I love Rockwell's use of dogs :)

First Love

At the Vets

And, of course, the famous portrait of Ruby Bridges:

Going to the exhibit on the Third Thursday was exhausting ... there was a huge line and it took forever to get into the exhibit, but it was nice to see such an amazing collection of art for free.  The exhibit will be at the Tacoma Art Museum until May 30, 2011.  I highly recommend the exhibit!  The third Thursday in May is this coming Thursday, May 19th and Ruby Bridges will be speaking on Saturday, May 21 at the University of Washington - Tacoma campus if you are interested in seeing her!