What do you think of when you hear the name Norman Rockwell? How about N.C. Wyeth or Charles Schulz? Do you think of a painting style, the work they produced, their influence on thousands of people or do you even think of them as artists at all? All of these names are very famous artists. "Artists? I never thought of them that way", you may being saying and it's fair that you think of them as illustrators. But, is an illustrator an artist? You bet and many are among the best.

Let's start with looking at what an illustrator does, (not "is", but does). An illustrator's primary function is to produce art that is narrative by nature, tells a story, picture is worth a thousand words. The very nature of these paintings or this art's purpose, (all art has a purpose right?), is to influence the masses and the best way to do that is through reproduction. Reproduction of an image in advertising, magazines covers, books, comics, greeting cards, product labels, billboards and a whole host a licensed or branded objects that we all buy by the millions, has been going on for years. Its heyday really began before photography grew in this area and now the computer has its part too, but is any of it art? Well, yes, it all is. Is it fine art, well, not all, but much of it is and some of it is the best.

Norman Rockwell could be considered a great portrait painter (and he is), but his paintings really portrayed everyday life. They really did give us a slice of life, perfect Americana. Rockwell was considered an illustrator and his art made it to the masses. Saturday Evening Post covers were seen by just about every American and these images still charm us today. Think of visiting a doctor's office and there on the wall seeing Rockwell's "Doctor and Doll", with the doctor's stethoscope held to a young girl's doll. It's there because his paintings give us comfort. Visit the Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA. and you will without question, see great art.

The same could certainly be said for Charles Schulz, whose Peanuts characters are still part of our everyday life. It's very easy to not even think of Schulz as an artist at all. Well, he was an illustrator too, but trust me, he was a great artist. He was so good, he brought his subject matter, "characters", to life. We don't think of Snoopy as a marker drawing, we barely can even see him as a dog, he's almost human! Schulz was certainly a storyteller too, but his art simply made him. Was it art, well, let's think about this. If you had an nicely framed, original sketch of Charlie Brown with Snoopy by his side, would you hang it or toss it in the closet as just a goofy comic character? Would its value make a difference to you? Yes, I think it would and by the way, the Schulz Museum is in Santa Rosa, CA.

Are you thinking N.C. Wyeth, I've heard that name, who's he? Hum, let's see there's Andrew Wyeth, I've heard of him. If you've just done this, you wouldn't be alone, but N.C. Wyeth, as perhaps one of the greatest illustrators of all time, has touched all of you who have ever had your nose buried in great books such as Robinson Crusoe, The Last of the Mohicans, Robin Hood, The Mysterious Stranger, The Scottish Chiefs or Treasure Island, just to name a few. If the words to all of these books written years ago, brought us great stories, N.C. Wyeth's paintings brought them to life and affected how many of these characters would be seen and portrayed in the movies, plays and even cartoons that followed for years to come. Many of these powerful paintings, grand in scale, can be seen at the nearby Brandywine Museum in Pa. It's worth the trip and N.C. Wyeth's art is among the best I have ever seen. Narrative yes, but so great.

These three names are but a few of the many great illustrators and yes, great artists that have touched us through their art. Their art is, in my opinion, as important as many of the most famous artists you know. A different purpose maybe, but their images are every bit as influential, interesting and are certainly art. Interesting too, they all seem to have museums!