Coca-Cola is taking it upon itself to bring about the recovery of three iconic Norman Rockwell paintings. And its first move is to team up with television programme Antique’s Roadshow, who will be broadcasting a report of the world’s ‘most wanted’ missing artworks.
The artworks in question – worth a total of about $1.5 million – have an intimate relation to the Coca-Cola Company. They were created back in the 1930s by Rockwell for Coca-Cola’s marketing campaigns, and were emblazoned across advertisement billboards. The three works depict various Americans enjoying the soft drink. They represent the most significant items missing from the Coca-Cola Company’s extensive collection of memorabilia.
These paintings have been the top of the list for us as long as I have been here and that’s been about 15 years’, said a spokesperson for Coke’s archives. The Company has searched across the world, in private collections, at auctions, and in public collections – including the Norman Rockwell Museum in Massachusetts, and the American Illustrator Museum in Rhode Island.
Rockwell created a total of six illustrations for Coca-Cola, and three have already been recovered. Two of them are on display at the World of Coca-Cola, while the third sits in the office of Coke’s Chief Executive.
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