"Save Freedom Of Worship" WWII OWI #43 Home Front Poster (Medium Format) by Norman Rockwell (1943)
"Save Freedom Of Worship" WWII OWI #43 Home Front Poster (Medium Format) by Norman Rockwell (1943)
OWI No. 43. Part of a series that Norman Rockwell created for the Saturday Evening Post, featuring the four freedoms that Americans were fighting to preserve during WWII. Features a Norman Rockwell painting of a diverse crowd worshiping "each according to the dictates of his own conscience". Originally printed in the Saturday Evening Post.
Note that this series of posters, commonly referred to as "The Four Freedoms", were printed in three sizes: 20" x 28", 28" x 40", and 40" x 56", and each was printed and distributed by the Office of War Information in 1943. (Note that with linen backing, posters can become stretched and so may not conform to these sizes exactly).
In 1941, FDR declared four freedoms for all humans: Freedom of Speech, Freedom from Fear, Freedom of Worship, and Freedom from Want. Inspired by this speech, Norman Rockwell struggled to illustrate these concepts until he attended a town hall meeting and realized that everyday middle American life would make it relatable. His paintings of the four freedoms were published in The Saturday Evening Post in 1943, and were a huge success. A national tour of the paintings, sponsored by the Post and U.S. Treasury, helped sell 133 million dollars in war bonds (every purchase received a set of posters), making the posters a part of American iconography.
Size*:
28.5" x 40.5"
Condition:
Very Good
Rolled. Linen backed and restored. Professional restoration addressed the following issues: The poster had tiny paper loss at some crossfolds, with small paper loss at the lower right crossfold. It had minor wear on parts of some folds, with a few creases and tiny tears in the borders. It had some tiny bits of paper loss in the upper left corner, slightly extending into the "SA" and into the top left corner of the image background.
Tags: WWII Home Front Bonds and Stamps OWI
Produced by: Office of War Information (OWI)
Artist/Designer(s): Norman Rockwell