In 1920, the young but accomplished illustrator Norman Rockwell was commissioned by General Electric to create a series of paintings for their Edison Mazda Lamp Works division to be used to advertise tungsten filament light bulbs. The Norman Rockwell Museum is honored to present a rare series of these early twentieth century lighting advertisements created by Norman Rockwell and several fellow Golden Age illustrators.
During World War II, Rockwell was inspired by the effort by FDR and others in defining and promoting American Values as a way to mobilize people in the fight against anti-democratic forces winning territory in Europe and in the Asia-Pacific. He took what he saw as abstract ideas in FDR's famous "Four Freedoms" speech and translated them into real-life contexts that regular people could relate to. These values were clearly meaningful to Rockwell in a way that lasted well beyond the end of the war, as something he passionately believed America would want to aspire to.
