Analyzing Norman Rockwell's 'The Runaway'

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INTRODUCTION:
"Right from the beginning, I always strived to capture everything I saw as completely as possible", a quotation from Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), one of the most popular and prolific US painter in the 19th century. This painting is named “The Runaway” done in 1958 that first appeared on The Saturday Evening Post, September 20, 1958 (cover). It’s a painting on oil on canvas and the dimensions are 91cm x 85 cm and it is now conserved in the “The Norman Rockwell Museum of Stockbridge” (Massachusetts). This painting depicts a realistic scene where we see a little boy sitting with a police man sitting beside him and their gaze is directed towards each other. The cook is watching his elbows on the counter. So we can conclude that this painting belongs to the realistic movement.

DESCRIPTION:

The scene takes place in a quiet cafe restaurant. On the background we can see objects that give us information about the time: on the top left hand corner we see an old radio. On the left there are homemade pies …show more content…

He seems to listen to the child attentively or talk to him. He represents authority and protective force. At his side, the young child dressed in neat and clean clothes seems to be talking with innocence. At his feet, in the foreground, a red bundle is the key to the story: it informs us that the child has recently run away. We can then imagine various possibilities. The child was in conflict with his parents or having dreams of adventures decided to run away. In any case, this young child is in search of his identity. Obviously, the presence of the police officer will put a brake on the premature ambition of this boy. The position of the two men slightly leaning towards the child evokes a protective attitude. The café boss is smiling maybe amused by the situation. The cop looks less amused than the man in white: he is affecting a professional demeanour toward the

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