Edward Hopper was probably the pre-eminent American realist painter in the years between the wars. Although he had made several trips to Paris, he spent nearly the whole of his career in Greenwich Village, New York. He claims to have been uninfluenced by his time in Europe and not to have heard of Pablo Picasso while he was there; to me this is very believable because there is little sign of influence of contemporary artistic movements.
Hopper's people, (if there are any), don't seem to interact with the viewer, each other or the world about them in general but I see beauty in these pictures.
He was interested in the isolation and loneliness of the people around him in the Big City. Indeed, his most famous, iconic work, Nighthawks, clearly depicts that sad situation. Almost paradoxically, his paintings show lonely people but remain attractive to look at. He was a consummate artist and his paintings seem to be full of a nostalgia for an earlier time. The rise of Abstract Expressionism completely cut him off from the artistic movement of the time. He was born in 1882 and died in 1967.
She is sitting alone and seems to be contemplating her situation. No one else is in the picture. Does she have any friends?
An empty painting. Or is it? There are no people in the early morning sunshine but there is a strong intriguing narrative. Are the shops open? Are they ever open?
Bright sunlight but still a single figure looking away from the viewer.
A later painting filled with gorgeous sunlight - but empty of people.
I'm listening to The Velvet Underground. I like this one: Who Loves the Sun? Listen here.
4 comments:
Thanks baz.. I hadn't thought about this for ages. Hopper always emphasised the alone, the lonely, the quiet. Most of his paintings were of one person, but even when there were two, they never seemed to interact. I wonder what his wife thought of all this introspection.
Hels: His wife Jo Nivison once said of him: "Sometimes talking to Eddie is just like dropping a stone in a well, except that it doesn't thump when it hits bottom." Apparently she was the opposite of him; gregarious and outgoing.
Hi Bazza - I knew of him ... but was expecting to see another work - but I must be thinking of another artist. I note Hels' comment re lonely, lonely, being alone and your reply re his wife, being the opposite. Talented man - not sure I like his art ... but thanks for reminding us of him - cheers Hilary
Hilary: I think his art is important. He is holding up a mirror to the society he lived in. As I have said, the subject is usually isolation and loneliness but I would happily hang one of his pictures on my wall!
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