Four Freedoms Paintings  The Four Freedoms is a series of four oil paintings produced in 1943 by the American artist Norman Rockwell.  The series, now in the Norman Rockwell Museum, was made for reproduction in The Saturday Evening Post over the course of four consecutive weeks in 1943 alongside essays by prominent thinkers of the day.  The Four Freedoms theme was derived from the 1941 State of the Union Address by FDR on January 6,

 During the speech, he identified four essential human rights (Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom From Want and Freedom From Fear) that should be universally protected.  This theme was eventually incorporated into the charter of the United Nations.  This series of paintings is the cornerstone of the career of Rockwell, who was the most widely known contemporary commercial artist of the mid 20th century, but who failed to achieve critical acclaim.  The Freedom from Want painting in particular is now dubbed “The Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving.”

Freedom of Speech

Freedom of Worship

Freedom from Fear

Freedom from Want

What do these paintings express about the American identity?

Freedom from Want parody

What does the parody express about the American identity?