Ed Hopper's Self-Isolation

     Edward Hopper created some of the most recognizable paintings depicting America in modern history. Unlike one might think, they do not contain towering buildings, proud flags, or purple mountain majesties. Instead, they often show one or few subjects, portrayed alone in a vast expanse, often looking down, presenting a sense of isolation. The paintings are created with bright light and color, which would usually invoke positivity, but that is not what is happening here. The painting above, titled Automat, was painted in 1927 and was displayed on Valentine's Day. The subject sits alone in a well lit cafe at night. The darkness behind her is expanded by the ceiling lights, making it much farther reaching. She looks into her drink, seemingly trying to find meaning in it, but to no avail.

      In his most famous piece, Nighthawks, four subjects are in a bar, three sitting and one bartending. They are not communicating, tiredly going through the motions. The mysterious nature of the painting has given way to many theories about who the people in the painting could be, and the aesthetic has inspired countless Noir and Neo-Noir films. Hopper used a mirror and modeled himself for the two men, and used his wife as a model for the woman. Hopper said that he was "painting the loneliness of a large city."
      Based on this, one might assume that Ed Hopper had gone through a life of hardship and isolation, possibly facing barriers to acceptance, and trauma that could've manifested itself into not feeling worthy.
     That was not the case. Edward Hopper was born into a well-off family in New York. He grew up with a sister, Marion. They attended both public and private schools. It seems that he never faced any disapproval from his family in response to his wishes to become an artist. He tried to sell paintings on his own for a while, even going door to door sometimes, before getting a job making movie posters. He continued working on his personal art, and began getting recognition around 1918. He gradually fit himself into a reclusive life style, spending many days without speaking to anyone.
     When he was 34, he met Josephine Nivison, the short, sociable liberal to his tall, quiet conservative. Naturally, the pair married a year later. Josephine, or Jo, handled all of his public engagements, making it so the artist could further isolate himself. During the Great Depression, the Hoppers did not face the same troubles that most of America did, as Hopper's career was finally beginning to gain speed. They even rented a cottage in Cape Cod in 1930, and continued to spend summers there for the rest of their lives.
      Ed and Jo had a very volatile relationship. He would hit her, and she would scream. She would punch and kick him, and he would ignore her. They would fight, not paying mind to the people around them, often very violently. Once, outside a restaurant in Cape Cod, Hopper wrestled his wife from behind the steering wheel, to the full view of everyone nearby.
       Edward Hopper died in 1967, at age 84.

      Based on his paintings, one would think Hopper lived a very isolated life. Based on his life, you would expect to see more vibrant and happy scenes. It seems like the two pieces of Edward Hopper don't fit together.
      Maybe, having grown up and lived relatively comfortably, he romanticized the "American Dream" as the struggle it took to get there. He was on the receiving end of it: the grandson or great grandson of someone who had made it. Another very famous artist, Vincent Van Gogh, thoroughly romanticized "peasant life", and basically lived it for the first part of his career, through he didn't need to.
      But Hopper didn't paint peasants. He painted people in their big apartments or houses, with nice clothes. Some have nice cars in the background. They just seem unhappy with what they've got. Maybe Hopper felt alone. He was surrounded by comfortable living and vibrant colors, but he was shy, and preferred to be alone. Maybe he tapped into the idea that an artist must be mad, and drove that to the extreme. He fostered the little bit of madness that he had, and made that a part of his identity. He isolated himself because he thought he needed to, when he was struggling to become a "real artist."
       However, conceivably the most simple answer is, Hopper didn't paint for himself. His paintings were not a representation of where he was, or how he was feeling, but he was trying to create something for someone else, and what they were feeling. Alain de Botton, British-Swiss philosopher said for Tate UK, "Edward Hopper belongs to a particular category of artist whose work appears sad but does not make us sad... Perhaps because they allow us as viewers to witness an echo of our own griefs and disappointments, and thereby to feel less personally persecuted and beset by them."

Paintings shown are Automat, Nighthawks, and Western Motel, from edwardhopper.net
Sources are Wikipedia, Tate UK, edwardhopper.net, and The Secret Lives of Great Artists by Elizabeth Lunday.