Edward Hopper’s Loneliness

Loneliness, long recognized as the central theme of Edward Hopper’s art, has more recently received pandemic-related attention from the popular press and social media. Evidence shows that the 1918 influenza pandemic and “social distancing” encouraged Hopper to abandon painting groups and concentrate on solitary figures or couples. Exploring why and how Hopper’s art elicits feelings of loneliness, this essay draws upon a comparison of his work with that of his acquaintance and contemporary, Theresa Bernstein, whose art, like Hopper’s, was purchased by the collector Duncan Phillips. Links also exist between Hopper’s art and fiction by William Faulkner and Sherwood Anderson.