“Doctor and Doll”

THE MEDICAL PROFESSION IS ALWAYS treated sympathetically in Norman Rockwell's work. His doctors make house calls, take the time to chat with patients and have bedside manners worthy of Lionel Barrymore. This elderly general practitioner is shown drawing on several decades of experience to break the ice with a nervous child. We can tell that the child has just arrived at his office, for she is still wearing a scarf and mittens. Her face is clouded with apprehension, but the doctor does his best to set her mind at rest by entering her fantasy world and placing his stethoscope to her doll's chest.

This painting is a good example of what might be called Rockwell's "old master" style. Many of his covers of this period emphasized two-dimensional design rather than paint- early values. Here he falls back on his academic background, and we can be sure that he did so with very good reason.

It may be that he felt that this idiom would reflect the tastes and values of the doctor who, presumably, began his practice in the Victorian era.