Three-year grant will support new digital experiences for today’s learners

Stockbridge, MA, September 29, 2016—Norman Rockwell Museum today announced it has received a $1.5 million grant from the George Lucas Family Foundation to strengthen the Museum’s Digital Learning and Engagement Division. The grant will enable the Museum to create a range of robust multi-media experiences for visitors on site and online as well as for the Museum’s traveling exhibitions. “This is a truly transformational grant,” notes Laurie Norton Moffatt, Director and CEO of Norman Rockwell Museum. “We are deeply grateful to George Lucas for supporting our commitment to students, teachers, and life-long learners everywhere, connecting them with Norman Rockwell’s legacy in new and compelling ways.”

The George Lucas Family Foundation grant will support the development of interactive educational resources related to a highly important traveling exhibition that the Museum will announce this fall. These will include a digital gallery-tour, using virtual and augmented reality technologies and accessible from mobile devices; an online curriculum-collaborative; a new K–12 curriculum; a national social-media campaign targeting young people; and a comprehensive online media hub encompassing podcasts, interviews, lectures, student galleries, and much more. The new digital and interactive tools will become essential educational resources that will enhance the understanding and appreciation of the Rockwell Museum’s permanent collection and special exhibitions, as well as the art of illustration.

Since Norman Rockwell Museum opened in 1969, over six million people have visited its galleries, and over five million have attended its traveling exhibitions. In addition to the hundreds of thousands of school-aged children, college students, and teachers reached through gallery-based programs, outreach to area schools, and K–12 curricula, over two million individuals have engaged with the Museum’s online collections and educational experiences.

Education is a core area of interest for George Lucas and the Lucas Family Foundation. The partnership between Norman Rockwell Museum and Mr. Lucas, an avid collector of Norman Rockwell artworks, evolved from the shared belief that Rockwell’s art transcends generations and cultures, communicating universal ideals related to community, family, and human rights, and that quality museum programming supports learning in the classroom while connecting people to their communities and broadening cultural awareness.

“It was Norman Rockwell’s wish that his collection be used to educate and engage the broadest of audiences,” explains Norton Moffatt. “This latest support from the George Lucas Family Foundation brings us that much closer to achieving his wish.”