My Outing to the Yale Art Gallery

Lobby of the Yale Art Gallery


Claude Lorraine
French, active in Rome, 1604-1682
"Pastoral Landscape"
1648
Oil on copper

John Singleton Copley
American, 1738-1815
"Mrs. Benjamin Pickman (Mary Toppan)"
1763
Oil on canvas

Jean-Francois Millet
French, 1814-1874
"Starry Night"
ca. 1850-65
Oil on canvas

Vincent van Gogh
Dutch, 1853-1890
"Corner in Voyer-d' Argenson Park at Asnie'res"
1887
Oil on canvas

Claude Monet
French, 1840-1926
"The Artist's Garden at Giverny"
1900
Oil on canvas

Claude Monet
French, 1840-1926
"Camille on the Beach at Trouville," 1870
Oil on canvas

Vincent van Gogh
Dutch, 1853-1890
"Le Cafe' de nuit (The Night Cafe')"
1888
Oil on canvas

Sugiuva Yasuyoshi
Japanese, born 1949
"Sunflower"
Heisei era (1989-present)
2005
Ceramic sculpture, glazed stoneware with detached painted ceramic seeds

Giovanni Paolo Panini
Italian, Rome, 1691/92-1765
"A Capriccio of the Roman Forum"
1741
Oil on canvas







"Rooms by the Sea," 1951
Oil on Canvas by Edward Hopper

As I stared at this portrait, all I could think of is what a peaceful place to be. I was drawn to this painting because of its simplicity and attention to detail. This painting reflects Edward Hopper’s legendary solitude. As you read, you will be able to tell that Hopper is my favorite artist. Imagine how happy I was to find three more of his pieces when I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art the following day. The accession number of this particular work of art is 1961.18.29. It measures 29 ¼ x 40 inches and has an asymmetrical balance and two-dimensional design. The painting gives me a feeling of serenity. Just by looking at the painting I can imagine the sound of the ocean waves and a warm, gentle breeze which gives me the calm feeling. The painting contains two rooms. The main room has a pale-blue wall, a yellow floor, an opened door, and a view of the ocean and sky outside the opened door. The second room gives me a side view of a brown dresser, a portion of a red chair, a green carpet, and a portion of another wall that displays a small part of a painting. Both walls have rays of light hitting them on a diagonal.
In the middle ground, a huge pale blue wall makes up the positive space and contains nothing on it but a band of light. It is the focal point and draws me in while, at the same time, takes my eye out of an open blue-green door that opens on to the dark blue sea. This wall dominates the painting. In the foreground the open door makes up the negative space and directs the eye toward the sea and the sky outside. The undulating lines used for the sea suggest the movement of the water and creates a visual interest. The background of the painting allows me to get a peek into the room on the other side of the main wall. I can only see portions of the items in that room. A smaller band of light lies against the pale blue wall in that room casting shadows on the carpet, wall, dresser, chair, and a portion of the partial painting. Everything in the second rooms seems to be on a smaller scale than in the first room.
The simplicity and the artist’s use of lines is the first thing I noticed about this painting. Hopper’s use of vertical, diagonal, horizontal, and undulating lines is exceptional. A few of the lines are thick but most are thin. The line at the horizon and the undulating lines depicting the sea represent nature. The vertical lines draw the eye up while the horizontal lines draw my eye out the opened door. The sunlight is represented by the diagonal lines and the dull yellow color creates a smooth rhythm. The major direction of the diagonal lines brings me in and the second direction takes me out in almost the same glance. There is unity and repetition created by the straight lines.
Objects creating mass in the room would be the huge wall and dresser. The wall grounds the artwork and the dresser adds weight. Rectangular shapes fill the space. The entire painting is very linear. The ocean and the sky are the atmospheric elements that help create the tranquil feeling of the painting.
The painting looks smooth to the touch, but after sitting and looking at the painting from different angles for a small period of time, the areas where the sun hit the wall seem to be a little rough. In these areas the paint crackles just a little and there is a hint of luster, whereas the rest of the painting seems muted. Contrast is created by soft and hard surfaces, light and dark colors, and the shadows cast by the sunlight. The cool and muted hues of yellows, greens, and blues are matched against the red in the chair and the brown in the dresser for a punch of color. The light is intense and saturates the parts of the wall it touches.
I think the painting probably held an intrinsic and psychological value for the artist. It looks lonely but peaceful. His uses of cool colors depict serenity. I notice that there are no people, boats, birds, or anything else that might disturb or distract someone. Maybe this person likes seclusion. I don’t see any children’s toys and the place looks immaculate. It looks as if the person who may live in this place is a loner.
The painting itself gives me the feeling of tranquility. The sounds of the ocean waves, the soft, warm sunlight, the sparseness in room décor and the openness of the door gives me an almost Zen-like feel. It makes me wonder what could have been going through the artist’s mind while he was painting this picture.
Edward Hopper was born on July 22, 1882 in Nyack, New York. His artistic talent was noticed when he was five years old. In 1900, Hopper attended the Correspondence School in Illustrating in New York. He furthered his education in art by attending the New York School of Art in 1901. Between 1906 and 1910 Hopper traveled to Europe three times. He finally moved to Greenwich Village in 1913 into a top floor apartment. In 1924, he married Josephine Nivison who was also a painter. The couple lived there until they died.
Hopper was a struggling artist. By the time he was 40 years old, he had only sold one painting. In 1923, the Brooklyn Museum bought one of his paintings and his popularity began. Some details reflected in his work include his use of light, angles, shapes, and lines. A feeling of calmness and solitude is a common theme in his paintings. He creates beauty in the mundane of every-day life. Among his many works of art, Hopper painted cityscapes as seen in “From Williamsburg Bridge,” quiet views as seen in “The Lighthouse at Two Lights,” and restaurants as seen in “Tables for Ladies.” These portraits are available for viewing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Edward Hopper died on May 15, 1967 at the age of 84. His wife died just 10 months later.

Works Cited

Museum of Fine Arts. Home page. 2009
http://www.mfa.org/hopper/artist.html