Portrait of John F.Kennedy 1960

Norman Rockwell made this portrait of John F. Kennedy with what looks like very delicate, light touches of paint. It gives the whole piece a softness, like a memory more than a sharp photograph. Looking closely, you can see how Rockwell builds up the face with these gentle strokes. There's a real tenderness in how he renders the texture of the skin, the subtle blush on the cheeks, and the way light catches in the hair. I think it's interesting how the crispness of the suit and tie contrast with the open and porous quality of the skin. Rockwell, who's so well known for his narrative paintings, took a different approach here. It feels like he's really trying to capture something deeper, something beyond just likeness. It reminds me a little of Elaine de Kooning's portraits, which also have this immediacy, this sense of trying to grab hold of a feeling as much as a visual representation. With a painting like this, there's no right or wrong way to see it – it’s about letting the painting’s atmosphere wash over you.