Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper painted Cape Cod Evening in 1939 in Truro, a small fishing village on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. The artist stated: “It is no transcription of a place, but pieced together from sketches and mental impressions of things in the vicinity. […] The dry, blowing grass can be seen from my studio window in the late summer or autumn. In the woman I attempted to get the broad, strong-jawed face and blond hair of a Finnish type of which there are many on the Cape. The man is a dark-haired Yankee. The dog is listening to something, probably a whippoorwill [sic] or some evening sound.” According to his wife, the painting was originally to have been titled Whippoorwill, after the nocturnal bird known for its distinctive song.
Several aspects of the scene are disturbing: typical of the human protagonists of Hopper's paintings, the man and woman—presumably a couple—are self-absorbed and oblivious to each other's presence; the uncut grass and encroaching locust grove are out of character with the well-maintained house; the dog's alert stance seems a portent of some imminent danger; and the advancing darkness of evening imparts a melancholy mood. In Cape Cod Evening, Hopper presents an assemblage of carefully orchestrated dissonances that convey a generally pessimistic, skeptical attitude toward human identity and humanity’s relationship with nature.
P.S. Visit theaters and cinemas in Edward Hopper’s paintings here. <3
P.P.S. Dear DailyArt users, on May 10th, we will release the brand new and shiny DailyArt app! :) The new version brings one massive change, the subscription model. It means that if you buy the Premium version of the app after May 10th, you would need to pay a monthly or yearly fee for Premium. So, if you see the "Upgrade to Pro" button below, please buy it now with a one-time fee and enjoy Premium forever! (If you don't see the button, it means that you are already Premium.) :)