Norman Rockwell painted a picture in honor of the 1951 mega FLOOD that devastated a large part of our city.
Mr. Hall of Hallmark Cards (their headquarters are in Kansas City) was a friend of Mr. Rockwell and commissioned him to do the painting. It is titled "KC Spirit", the original hangs in the Hallmark Visitors Center.
"KC Spirit"
Rockwell's lone figure is sat against our skyline and faces his fate with an upturned chin and rolled up sleeves.
My husbands childhood home was taken in this flood. He remembers standing on their roof at age 7 and waiting for a family member with a pickup truck to come and rescue him, his Mom and 3 other children. His Mom salvaged a few items but all of the family photos went down the river.
I found this book for my husband several years ago to have in our library.
While researching some of the facts of the flood I found that Thomas Hart Benton also painted a painting in honor of the flood.
"Flood Disaster"
Linking with PINK SATURDAY - ANYTHING GOES
BLUE MONDAY
ABC WEDNESDAY
Ann
19 comments:
I was at a place the other day looking around . And as I looked around. A wall had all R.W. Painting of plates.
I was sadden that they ended up out of sight and to not be remembered.
Hi Ann! Thanks for visiting me at my blog...came by to say hi and check out your Norman Rockwell painting. I have always loved his art. Sadly we could not find the museum in Stockbridge this time....they must have moved. Flea Market Flip is one of my favorite shows too! I'd love to be part of it.
Scary memory for a little kid! I bet that is an interesting book about that event! Have a blessed day dear friend, HUGS!
Hi Ann,
What a tragedy! I'm sure it still haunts you husband.
Norman Rockwell is my favorite painter. I have several of his prints framed and hanging in my home. I see the blueprints.
Thanks for playing today.
Happy Blue Monday!
Something like this burns into a child's memory for life. I still remember flooded streets in our little community, nothing this epic but childhood images of fear linger. While living in Dayton, OH I learned of the great flood of 1913 that scarred the town and inspired a series of five dams that were built and provide parks to this day to insure the city will never flood again. We live in a great country where people have support and great courage to rebuild their lives and triumph over disaster. How wonderful to have found a book that documents the flood your husband lived through.
He was such an awesome artist!
Thanks for sharing the history of that piece.
Joy @ Books and Life
Interesting post. Lovely artwork. Thanks for sharing this history.
Have a good week.
Foods cause such devastation! I can't imagine how frighted your husband was as a child to see his home and neighborhood flooding up to the roofs of buildings. Glad he and his family survived! I was fortunate on the flooding that occurred during hurricane Sandy in NY, as the waters stopped down the block from where I lived, but I saw the devastation they caused all around my neighborhood and NY.
Natural disasters can be so devastating and frightening as well. I can only try to imagine what you husband must have gone through as a child.
BeatAboutThe Book
I still remember the floods of 1941 in the city where I lived, - such devastation.
What a scary event to experience as a child. I love the contrasting paintings you have chosen.
In Borneo, we had flood every year, and water came up to our thighs.
Fat Indian wedding was a copy cat of Fat Greek Wedding.
We're currently suffering through a drought, something no one ever thought Vancouver, BC, would ever see. So it's hard to imagine a flood. Our floods are when the farmers' fields get covered with water because we're so close to the entrance to the Pacific Ocean. It doesn't happen too often, though.
Leslie
abcw team
Beautiful post Ann! Love the story and photos too. I have a few Norman Rockwell prints. I just saw them in my garage with lots of other wall hangings. One day I will get around changing things out and enjoy them inside my home again. My hometown of Pueblo, Colorado survived two devastating floods in 1921 and 1965. My phamily was on vacation in 1965 so we missed the flooding but my grandmothers home in an area called "the Grove" still stands today having survived that 1921 flood. COme visit me soon. Hugs, Anne
The FLOOD picture I'm going to have to check out when we go to the Rockwell museum next month.
ROG, ABCW
THanksfor the sweet sentiments on my post, and I just love your most interesting post on the flood... especially how you brought so much out about the paintings and their correlations. very cool!
Floods have sure been in the news lately - such destruction. Great post showing some of the art inspired by floods. Thanks for stopping by - have a wonderful weekend
Floods are a Frightening Fact of life. I remember some in our small town. We didn't understand the seriousness at the time (especially since we didn't know anyone that lost a home), but rather loved that we had a couple of days off school when the buses couldn't make it across the low point in the road that led to our village. It was fascinating to see these pieces of art reflecting impressions in the artists' memories. I love that you found that book for your husband and can imagine how much that meant to him!
Firstly my apologies for a late comment, i have been far to busy repairing my blog after a moval from one host to another... and taking care of other things that needed to be taken care of since my husband and i have health issues at the same time.
Thankfully i only know about floods through stories and not by own experience.
have a nice weekend
Melody (abc-w-team)
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