This artwork call “Prom Dress”. This Norman Rockwell – The Saturday Evening Post painting, appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post on March 19, 1949.
I can’t write better then the folks at The Saturday Evening Post, so here is an excerpt from their story about this image. A Very Primate Moment article.
It is a very private moment in a young woman’s life. She stands on that imperceptible precipice between childhood and becoming a woman. It’s her first prom. She has thought of this moment for years — what will it be like, who will she go with, how will she feel? Her nervous, slightly tentative excitement is palpable as she gingerly holds up the dress in front of the full-length mirror. This mirror has reflected her back to herself for years — it has been a silent witness to each unfolding year of her childhood.
The purity, delicacy, and appeal of the new dress contrasts with the lived-in, worn-out room. From the looks of the elegant dress box it seems she went to the Big City, perhaps saved her money over time and got the dress of her dreams. Rockwell chose to paint the walls a yellowed ivory to emphasize the untouched white of the dress. You wouldn’t know how drab the walls are without the crisp, clean white gown — the two representing where she has come from and where she is going.
The see-through chiffon layers with sparkles are reminiscent of a delicate confection. A Cinderella dress. With gold shoes like ballet slippers waiting to be danced in. From the other side of the room, the faded pink wallpaper with a subtle feminine design frames her reflected face, and there is a hint of the wallpaper to the left of the closet door — hidden touches of pink where you don’t expect them.
Her old clothes hang neglected in the closet. My grandfather didn’t want you to miss this — he illumined the contents with the light from a closet window. A tired petticoat pops its way out of the rack, asking to be remembered. Her pajamas and ice skates hang in disarray on the door. All the remnants of the childhood she is leaving behind.
This chart is 322×349 stitches and contains 115 colors. You’ll love the details in this one.
©SEPS. Licensed by Curtis Licensing. All Rights Reserved.
