Dayhoff Soundtrack: 20070905 Special to the Westminster Eagle - Edward Hopper: A stranger in a world he never made

Monday, September 10, 2007

20070905 Special to the Westminster Eagle - Edward Hopper: A stranger in a world he never made

Edward Hopper: A stranger in a world he never made

There is a certain unexplainable enigma that draws folks back again and again to ponder the mysteries of Edward Hopper's "American Scene" paintings.

Perhaps it is Hopper's peculiar way of depicting the stark existence of the human condition in such a simple "language" which begs for questions ... yet offers no answers.

Both questions and answers are welcome when the first major Hopper exhibit in Washington, D.C. in 25 years opens this month. The Carroll County Arts is hosting a trip to the exhibit at the National Gallery on Sept. 25 (see box).

The theme of a sophisticated confrontation with psychological tension and isolation is evident in Hopper's most famous work, the 1942 "Nighthawks."

That painting, according to Hopper himself, is of "a restaurant on New York's Greenwich Avenue, where two streets meet." Perhaps prophetically, progress did away with the diner long ago.

"Nighthawks" is a painted storyboard for a film noir movie on the late night lonely lives of four mysterious characters. It is left to each viewer to provide the plot and dialogue.

The painting shows no visible entrance or exit. The characters appear trapped and highlighted in the glare of the artificial light.

Hopper died in 1967. According to the diaries of his wife, Josephine Hopper, he always explained that the "Nighthawks" painting depicted "three characters." He also admitted that he painting was "unconsciously ... painting the loneliness of a large city."

But perhaps the best explanation of the painting came from A. E. Housman, who once wrote about being "a stranger and afraid. In a world I never made."

On a recent trip to Boston, I leaped at the opportunity to see the genius of Mr. Hopper, considered by many art historians to be one of the most influential -- if not one of the most popular -- artists of the 20th century.

The exhibit at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, included much of his often overlooked earlier works, such as "New York Corner," one of his earliest oil paintings from 1913; "Two Trawlers," a watercolor from 1923-24; "Gloucester Mansion," 1924; "Box Factory, Gloucester," 1928; and "House of the Fog Horn I" from 1927.

In pieces such as 1929's "Chop Suey" -- a favorite for many Hopper aficionados; as well as "Rooms for Tourists," 1945; "Cape Cod Evening," 1939; and "Office at Night," 1940, one may gain some insight into Mr. Hopper's emphasis on the importance of the small details of life.

After being exhibited in Boston through Aug. 19, the Hopper exhibit now moves to The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it will be displayed Sept. 16, 2007 to Jan. 21, 2008.

In addition to the Carroll County Arts Council bus trip on Sept. 25, Hopper's work is the subject of a documentary that accompanies the exhibition's opening. In the Baltimore area, the film will be shown on MPT Channel 67, Sunday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. E-mail him at: kdayhoff AT carr.org.