Santa and Expense Book 1920

This Norman Rockwell image shows Santa with an expense book. It's probably an illustration, and Rockwell has a knack for making these scenes feel so real. I like the way Santa is biting on the quill, like he's deep in thought. The painting is all about textures: the soft fur of Santa’s beard, the smooth glass of the inkwell, and the rough pages of the book. Look at the faces of the children behind Santa. They’re painted with such light, feathery strokes, almost like a dream. It’s funny how the artist contrasts this with the sharp lines of Santa’s glasses and the rigid spine of the “Expense” book. The whole thing feels like a memory, a story being told over and over. You can see similar painterly and illustrative approaches in the works of someone like David Hockney, especially in his portraits, where the everyday becomes something a little magical, a little strange. Art is always having a conversation, isn't it?