Edward Hopper (1882-1967). The American artist’s work is ubiquitous on the walls of restaurants, takeaways & student accommodation in that its inoffensive, reminiscent of Hollywood movies & easy to identify - the perfect trifecta! Nighthawks (1942) 
He was born in NY State to a middle class family, was encouraged in his painting by his rich parents & sent to private schools. He wanted to be a (naval) architect but chose art, an interest which translates into much of his work. Here are some early c1900 works
I think that art should be accessible to everyone so have set up an Etsy shop with a group of my drawings at a special price. Take a look!
Hopper grew up in a strict family & was uncomfortable with emotion. Indeed it’s reported that he was disturbed by the nude models at art school in NY city. His early work is characterised by this emotional discomfort. Shown are 2 early self-portraits & a figure study
Hopper’s art was always a struggle between his innate lack of comfort with emotion & his need to express himself. It is perhaps this sensibility that appeals to his many fans. Pictured are studies from the early 1900s where his uneasiness is glaringly apparent
In his early work it is when he starts to paint inanimate objects such as houses & landscape that his work comes to life. House & Tree (1905), Interior (1905/6) and a revealingly furtive female nude (1903-5) demonstrate this
Hopper’s streetscapes capture the activity of the Eastern urban areas. Here is his American Village (1912) full of incident. In his Blue Night (1914) each figure is characterised by their isolation & in a drawing from 1918 that isolation is shown in The Open Window
In 1915 the artist painted his mother, a woman who had a strong impact on him. Also shown are two early sel-portraits (1903 & 1906). Hopper’s work as an artist matured into the style we know today around 1920
His etchings are much sought after. Night in the El Train (1918), Night in the Park (1921) & Evening Wind (1921) show his ongoing interest in nighttime images as well as isolated figures
Hopper’s iconic images of American architecture were already established by the 1920s. Here’s a watercolour of Haskell’s House (1924), another of House on Middle Street, Gloucester (1924) & an oil painting of New York Pavements (1924-5)
Hopper’s reticent approach to emotion was the ideal method to present the isolation of an increasingly urban America. Automat (1927), Early Sunday Morning (1930) & Barber Shop (1931) all beat with loneliness & alienation
Hopper rhapsodies the clapboard architecture of NE America as well as urban environments. Captain Upton’s House (1927), House at Dusk (1935) & House on Pamet River (1934). These are the structures of isolation & alienation
Hopper painted his masterpiece Nighthawks in 1942. The image is one of the most popular in American art & has been adapted to include famous actors, Star Wars characters as well as the Simpsons cartoon cast.
Less well known is his Approaching the City (1946) which discards any sign of human life at all. Seven AM (1948) is the small town equivalent. The mood changes dramatically by the 1950s when he painted Rooms by the Sea (1951)
Office at Night (1940), Girlie Show (1941) & Hotel Lobby (1943) all mark the war years. That the war, the greatest upheaval in world history does not impinge on Hopper’s steady output of alienated people is striking at a time when historical accounts describe a coming together
It has been argued that Ground Swell (1939) is Hopper’s war painting. It’s mood (like so much of his art) is ominous, it’s characters are all transfixed by the warning buoy, the swell is caused by a storm elsewhere & the work may refer to Auden’s Sept 1st 1938 poem
In later life Hopper’s emotional range extends into a more hopeful form. Morning Sun (1952) & a Woman in the Sun (1961) show women in a sensual & outward looking manner. In Chair Car (1965), Hopper even shows a character hoping to engage!
In Western Motel (1957) Hopper has the woman look directly at us which is almost unique in his work & a total about turn from his Excursion into Philosophy (1959) or his Hotel Window (1955). It’s Hopper’s own ability to express his social dislocation that has made him so popular
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