Ever feel like TikTok trends are becoming boring and monotonous? Everyone loves to look back and reminisce on popular trends from the earlier eras of TikTok like the Adult Swim trend and the wikiHow trend, but now it feels as though the app is undergoing a trend recession. So many users are wondering “Where did all of the creative TikTok trends go?” and if you feel the same way, you needn’t fear much longer.
In case you haven’t seen it, there is currently a trend going around where people post a slideshow meticulously analyzing details of an image while a calming jazz melody plays in the background. Sometimes it’s of a painting, other times a seemingly random photo, but all of them are connected by the fact that they are being very closely dissected. At the end of the slideshow, there is usually a title followed by the name “Norman Rockwell” (yes, the same Norman Rockwell that Lana Del Rey named her album after). But who even is that? Why is analyzing art (or some other image) suddenly popular now? Is it even that deep?
It is without a doubt that the Internet, especially TikTok, is suffering from a creativity drought. It’s been a couple years since a truly original, high-effort trend made its way through the app, and it certainly doesn’t help that we as a society have access to tools that can hinder thinking outside of the box (cough cough, Generative AI). This sudden analysis of artwork and photography, however, might just be the thing to turn it all around. The Norman Rockwell painting analysis trend displays a resurgence of creativity, analysis, and critical thinking at the perfect time, because these traits have been essentially lost in today’s world.
Let’s make sure we know who we’re talking about first. Norman Rockwell was an American painter who lived from 1894 to 1978, and he was known for his artworks portraying silly and sentimental moments of American life. In his lifetime, he produced more than four thousand original artworks and was commissioned to illustrate books, calendars, stamps, and even brand advertisements such as Coca-Cola and Jell-O. Fun fact, he also painted a version of the feminist icon Rosie the Riveter! Go Norman!
Recently, the TikTok account @historygirlstuff gained a lot of attention for their slideshow videos discussing certain artworks. While their page consists of paintings from many artists, the ones by Rockwell tended to gain the most traction. In each post, the user would point out small details in a painting and explain how these details contributed to the meaning of the artwork as a whole, from facial expressions to gestures to items in the background. The last slide held the title and artist of the painting. These videos were also almost always posted with the song “Moonlight Serenade” by Glenn Miller, which is a very fitting title for the rather calming medley of instruments.
A lot of TikTok users found the appearance of these videos on their For You Page slightly odd, since it’s not usual that art history goes viral on the app unless it is actively being sought after. Because of this, people began creating their own parodies; they would use popular memes or screenshots from popular videos and use the same analysis tactics as the original TikTok account, creating a deeper meaning for these images by paying close attention to colors, gestures, and expressions. Some people had even used images of themselves and their friends doing something together. Though the interpretations of these images seem wacky, nonsensical, or useless, the trend as a whole has combined humor and intellect in ways that we haven’t seen in over a year on this app.
Have you ever heard the phrase “maybe the curtains are just blue”? This quip made its way into pop culture as a means of mocking English teachers and their tendency to overanalyze certain texts; finding symbolism or deeper meanings behind what most consider to be a simple object became a spectacle, and any complex interpretations of a piece of media was deemed dramatic and “too much work”. Now, even though many videos under this trend are satire, they represent a rejection of this mindset; people are beginning to think deeply and examine something critically even if it may appear simple to understand at face value, which creates new meanings. So yes, it is that deep.
This means of analysis is crucial especially now, during a time where many rely on things such as AI to tell them how to think. Interfaces like ChatGPT can create nearly anything using a simple prompt, which takes away from the benefits that come from purely human thinking. So, creation and critical analysis without the help of AI is seen as tedious and time-consuming; why go through the effort when the press of a button could yield the same result? This has led many to give up participating in it altogether. As of now, the Norman Rockwell parody videos have thrived on nothing but human imagination and interpretation, which in itself makes the trend so much more meaningful than other ones that are circulating. It has prompted users to pay attention to small details and find their own meanings in things that may appear one-dimensional. And the Internet loves it!
The Adult Swim and wikiHow trends did so well because of the fact that they required effort, wit, creativity, and thought; the Norman Rockwell trend, like its dearly beloved predecessors, is a combination of interpreting something in a new way and using personal interests as well as experiences to contribute to a multitude of diverse, unique videos. TikTok as a whole was in desperate need of some sort of creative touch and what could possibly be better than a little art history? Norman Rockwell himself has not only influenced the generation he lived in, but also the current one, by giving people a greater appreciation for art and creativity almost half a century later. It’s no wonder Lana named her album after him!
We are known for our humor and our ability to recreate things from our surroundings that we enjoy using purely our minds. Let’s keep it that way.