Thinking about Edward Hopper
Cape Cod Morning by Edward Hopper
I recently came across the image above and found myself mesmerised. It was hard not to identify with it. The woman at the window, what do you suppose she is thinking? I feel many of us would have a lot to say on that one. :)
I have long been a fan of Edward Hopper's work and even more so after our recent drive through the many small towns scattered along the back roads of New England. Places and faces fixed in time, just as they are in the paintings. Many words have been used to describe Edward Hopper's paintings; loneliness and isolation are among them. In the 2008 video clip below, Franklin Kelly, Senior Curator of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, suggests that their is a quiet beauty to his work. I have to agree.
More on Edward Hopper, here.
I think she might be watching her dogs chase squirrels.
ReplyDeleteHello Jeanne
ReplyDeleteI love Hopper's paintings and yes, they have a New England feel to them.
Could she be looking at her child board the school bus?
Have a wonderful week
Helen xx
Thanks for the video...I, too, am a Hopper fan. :)
ReplyDeleteI love Hopper's paintings. They have a solitude and stillness that I don't think always necessarily reflects loneliness. Sometimes being alone can be enjoyable. I see this woman taking a break from housework to enjoy the nature she sees from her window.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't known of Hopper before this, so thank you for the introduction Jeanne. And doesn't Franklin have the best job!
ReplyDeleteHi Jeanne, oh what a lovely image for a Monday morning. I love Hooper and thought I had seen most of them, but not this one...Gorgeous. I hope you are well big sis...thinking of you. Lou x
ReplyDeleteQuiet beauty. I would have to agree. She seems wistful and dreamy, but not isolated. Or am I projecting that because I feel wonderful in my country solitude. Beautiful Jeanne. You are often in my thoughts at the moment. Virgo you :)
ReplyDeleteI have seen Hopper's paintings but did not know the name of the person who created them. The paintings are just lovely and what fun to learn about the creator of them!
ReplyDeleteTo me the woman in the painting could be watching for her children or she see's deer or some other animal in the meadow ; )
Thank you all for your comments and thoughts on what she might be looking at. Great suggestions here! I have two schools of thought. One is that she is appreciating a quiet morning and looking out to a majestic view. The other, is that she is watching her teenage daughter, with a boy, sneaking a kiss...which is causing her to grip onto the table tighter and tighter. Last she heard her daughter was with her girlfriends. :) I think I will stick with majestic view...I feel much calmer with that thought! I have had both :)
ReplyDeleteI first got to know Hopper's work when there was a show of his work at the American Museum in Giverny years back. Love his use of light and colour.
ReplyDeletexx
gorgeous painting! its almost as if she's holding herself back from going outside.....perhaps she has a cake in the oven and has to wait for it to cook, and then I imagine she will go outside and feel the sun on her back (which is what I would like to be doing right now!)
ReplyDeleteThat is such a lovely picture Jeanne. I'm going for the romantic and think she's waiting for her husband or son to return home from war or something like that.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very beautiful paiting and I think I too will take the optimistic route of what she may be thing, she is gazing out from her window looking perhaps at the sheep or cows grazing nearby. Or perhaps, just out of view is a bird feeder and she has just noticed a family of cardnials frolicing among the branches. I find mysself doing that often, watching the birds out my kitchen window!
ReplyDeleteHope you are having a wonderful time with all of your children home! I am sure that it must be lively!
Have a wonderful week!
Jeanne, I love Hopper and this one is my all time favourite of his! Thank you for posting. What a wonderful welcome back to blogland after a frustrating week of computer troubles:-)
ReplyDeleteI love Hopper. thanks for reminding me of him--I haven't looked at his work in ages. I think she's thinking what a beautiful day it's going to be.
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