Inspired by Rockwell’s 1943 Freedom of Speech, the artist notes that this work represents “those who have been marginalized and have fought for inclusion in the political process.”

In this joyous scene, Peterson and husband Mark Johnson host a Thanksgiving Day gathering of the couple’s close friends. Set in the home of Stockbridge neighbors Carol Murko and Jim Finnerty, the image was inspired by the warmth of an actual holiday celebration and by Rockwell’s 1943 Freedom from Want.

Inspired by Rockwell’s Home on Leave, a September 15, 1945 cover for The Saturday Evening Post, this work is Peterson’s first foray into the appropriation of the illustrator’s art. In Peterson’s version, the sailor’s pack of cigarettes is replaced by a blue iPhone, but like Rockwell, it incorporates just the right model, Nicholas Browne, animal, the late Ricardo, and props. The artist used a reflector to magnify the sense of light and shadow in the work, and Adobe Photoshop transformed his photograph into a painterly narrative.

Set in Joe’s Diner, a Lee, Massachusetts landmark that also inspired The Runaway, Rockwell’s 1958 Post cover, this scene features Stockbridge police officer Heidi Teutch and young Benjamin Gross in a warm exchange. Teutch volunteered to pose for Peterson’s recreation but had to seek permission to be photographed in her uniform. Ultimately, the Stockbridge fire department assisted by providing a uniform for Teutch to wear. Peterson chose to pair a female police officer and a child of color in this scene, noting that “the chemistry of the woman and the child is warm. She gives him her cap to wear⸺she’s helping him.” Originally shot in 2014 with  Jim Finnerty as the soda jerk, it was revised in 2018 to feature Ed Locke, who portrayed the runaway boy in Rockwell’s original.

In Peterson’s welcoming scene, Rockwell model Wray Gunn (second from left) appears in this artwork for a new age. A resident of Lee and Stockbridge, Massachusetts in his youth, Gunn modeled for Rockwell as a boy who loved baseball in the artist’s 1967 New Kids in the Neighborhood, which addressed the theme of racial integration in America’s suburbs. An ancestor of Agrippa Hull, who lived in the Berkshires before and after fighting in the American Revolution, Gunn shared his experiences with visitors as a Norman Rockwell Museum guide.  This work on the theme of tolerance is a companion to Saying Grace in the Main Street Café.

Massachusetts State Representative Wm. Smitty Pignatelli floats in a gravity-free environment in this work, which takes inspiration from When I Am An Astronaut, Rockwell’s 1969 book illustration featuring Pignatelli as a model. He recalls the difficulty of holding a challenging pose, which required that his head remain lifted during Rockwell’s photography session. We are honored to include Pignatelli’s astronaut suit among the Norman Rockwell Museum’s archival collections.

During World War II, Rockwell’s Willie Gillis series for The Saturday Evening Post told the story of a fictional private’s experiences in a decidedly lighthearted tone. In the last of eleven covers, published in 1946, Gillis is studying comfortably at a window looking out at the Old Chapel at Middlebury College, his college education made possible by the GI Bill. “In my update, Latinex soldier Will Cisnernos goes go college after having served in Afghanistan,” Peterson said. He is surrounded by the trappings of his dorm room but close inspection reveals that Cisneros has lost a foot while in service to his country; a purple heart commemorates his sacrifice. Prescription drugs are indicative of his ongoing pain, but his bicycle helmet and guitar reveal that he enjoys mobility and music as he pursues his studies and works toward his future.