Synopses & Reviews
This magnificent volume reproduces all of Hopper's 366 oil paintings. They were first published in the four-volume catalogue raisonné of the artist's works. Now they are offered at a price that will make them attractive to anyone seriously interested in art. Hopper was comfortable in both oil and watercolor, although his technique with each medium varied considerably. While oils were done in the studio, often from detailed sketches with notations on colors, the watercolors were painted on location and seem far more spontaneous. In the years since Hopper's death in 1967, many of his paintings have achieved iconographic status as statements about this country. His empty cityscapes and countrysides speak of our sense of loneliness and alienation, while his fascination with the light on Cape Cod and the buildings in Gloucester result in the evocation of feelings that can only be described as uniquely American. Published in association with the Whitney Museum of Art.
Review
"Suggestively called an intimate biography, this book focuses on the complexities of Hopper's marriage and what this difficult relationship tells us about the painter's solitary, taciturn, and sometimes violent character. Although Hopper would have us believe he was interested merely in effects of light, Levin, in a measured and balanced psychological approach to the painter's subjects, gives us insight into their darker meaning. After reading this informative and absorbing work, the reader will see Hopper's painting in a new way and better understand something of their haunting bleakness." Reviewed by Andrew Witmer, Virginia Quarterly Review (Copyright 2006 Virginia Quarterly Review)
Synopsis
The complete oils of arguably America's best and probably America's most "American" artist.
About the Author
Gail Levin is the author of numerous other books, including the classic Edward Hopper: The Art and the Artist (Norton) and Edward Hopper: An Intimate Biography. She lives in New York City.