Marilyn and Mary Visit the Norman Rockwell Exhibit

There are some people who come into our lives and there are some who come into our lives and our hearts. I met Marilyn Keating in 1979 when I moved into the house next door to her in Wilton Manors, Florida. Oh, my, the experiences and confidences we've shared!! She's such a good listener and I admire her intelligence so much.Yesterday was a wonderful day. Marilyn and I went to the Ft. Lauderdale Art Museum to see the Norman Rockwell Exhibit. I've always loved his work and have a whole new appreciation of it now. I never would have guessed how much planning and work went into each of his paintings.When you go in, they give you a black remote-looking gismo to hang around your neck. Most of the paintings had a number by them. You punch in the number and hold the gismo to your ear like a phone. The commentary that played was so interesting, much of it narrated by one of Rockwell's sons.Norman Percevel Rockwell (1894 – 1978) was a 20th century American painter most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening Post magazine over more than four decades.

I thought that maybe he just saw something in his imagination and painted it....but it was quite the opposite....he planned each with detailed notes, numerous sketches, then he used live models.One example of his more serious work is The Problem We All Live With, which was on the cover of Look magazine in 1964. It dealt with the issue of school integration.

Marilyn is one of those intellectuals who reads every word besides listening to the commentary.

One of the last rooms had over 300 framed copies of his Saturday Evening Post covers. It was mind-boggling to think that one person could accomplish so much.

I do remember this one from my younger days:

We had a delightful, long lunch at a restaurant near the Broward Performing Arts Center. Sitting outside seems to make food taste better and sharing with a friend, even better.