NORMAN ROCKWELL | Good Land!

The artist
Margaret Sultzer, New Rochelle, New York, circa 1920 (gift from the above)
By descent to the present owner

The National Sunday Magazine, Boston, Massachusetts, October 8, 1916, cover illustration

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes, Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has been restored and should be hung as is. The canvas has been lined, using Beva-371 as an adhesive, and stretched onto a new stretcher. The surface is well-textured and clean. It has been varnished and retouched.The retouches are visible under ultraviolet light. The retouches are accurate and small, but fairly numerous in the white background. Retouches have been applied here in horizontal lines, corresponding to folds in the original canvas, as well as in isolated dots eliminating small losses.The signature in the lower right is original. The immediate area surrounding the signature has not been cleaned. The calligraphy is slightly uneven. This is not unusual for Rockwell since these paintings were used for reproduction and Rockwell often adjusted his work when it was returned from the printer.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

At twenty-one, Norman Rockwell and his family moved to New Rochelle, New York, a town whose residents included the renowned illustrators J.C. and Frank Leyendecker and Howard Chandler Christy. In New Rochelle, Rockwell rented a studio from Margaret Sultzer in the late 1910s. As a gesture of his gratitude for her hospitality and kindness, the young artist gifted her with the present work, which has since descended in her family.

This early example of Rockwell's work was published as the cover illustration for the October 8, 1916 edition of The National Sunday Magazine, a semi-monthly section of The Boston Sunday Globe. In Good Land!, he renders each component of the composition – from the golf clubs to the tennis racquet cover–with remarkable detail. Rockwell’s characteristic ability to capture emotion is simultaneously demonstrated in his depiction of the woman’s expressive reaction to the young boy's mischievous prank. The present work not only displays Rockwell’s sentimental sense of humor but also illustrates his quintessentially American aesthetic.

This work is included in the Norman Rockwell Museum Digital Collections/Online catalogue raisonné.