If you have never heard of Emile Norman, you would know him by now if you saw the documentary by Will Parrinello “Emile Norman: By His Own Design” on KCET at 10pm, and then you would have slapped your forehead and wondered why you never noticed that Emile Norman was the guy who made the mural in the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco, known as the “endomosaic” mural. This mural made by him was a signature work of art, and Emile Norman used a mixture of sea shells, crushed glass and other substances with beautiful result. You wouldn’t be blamed for not knowing him though, as that is about the extent of his work in terms of being displayed in a largely public place for everyone to see.

Emile Norman was also a gay man who had to move his life elsewhere to the Big Sur in order to live it the way he wanted to, as during his younger days, homosexuality was still taboo compared to modern times, and it was not advisable for guys like Emile Norman to come out in the open. He did enjoy that comfort in the Big Sur though, and lived life together with his lover Brooks Clement. While the documentary did not exactly focus on Emile Norman’s homosexuality and gay life, there was enough material in it to provide quite a bit of coverage on the subject. The two lovers lived together until Clement died in 1973 and it was quite a romantic gay story.

With the amount of coverage on the loosening of laws concerning gay marriages, the story on the life of Emile Norman was heartwarming and intriguing at the same time. The documentary tried to focus more on Emile Norman’s life and work as an artist, which was greatly underrated. However, due to the public interest in gay laws, Emile Norman’s life and the gay aspects of it unexpectedly garnered more attention. It was a fantastic piece on a gay man like Emile Norman at a time when America was not ready for their acceptance into society, and how Emile Norman dealt with it with dignity, pride and integrity, and no little bit of romance.