Creating great art is something that requires a unique talent. The average person, fascinated by art though they may be, will simply not have the talent to create a work of art, even if they take literally years out of their life to study, practice and hone their abilities. For those of us who fall into this bracket, a look at the work of Norman Rockwell – often simple but always brilliant – could make us feel rather jealous, if we did not take the attitude that we are simply glad someone created these works, whoever it should be.

Unlike many of the great car artists – the Masters of car art – Rockwell’s works tend to depict individual, ordinary human beings experiencing the car as opposed to scenes of people driving for sport. While the likes of Gotschke, de la Maria et al preferred to depict racing cars, and race scenes, Rockwell’s work tended more towards the evolution of the motor car as a means of getting individuals from one place to the next – or a machine for the sheer enjoyment of driving.

Norman Rockwell clearly did a good job with his depictions of motor cars and the whimsy of life, for he was commissioned again and again by US Presidents to create portraits, including both John F Kennedy and Richard M Nixon. A real jack of all trades, and a master of several among those, he depicted interests in Civil Rights and Space Exploration in addition to the cars which he loved. In 1977 – a few years into his ninth decade on the planet, he even gained the highest civilian accolade on offer to a US citizen when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.