In exactly one week from the time I’m writing this, I will be on an overnight flight to London.
Next Friday will be my last day in the United States for 63 days as I embark on a personal journey of worldly exploration and voluntary loneliness. In preparation for my trip, I started reading a book titled The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone by Olivia Laing. I saw it on a list of books to read when traveling alone, so I figured, why not give it a try?
In the early pages of the book, Laing dives into the artwork of Edward Hopper, one of the most famous American painters of the 20th century. At first, I did not recognize him by name. However, once I looked up his work, one painting in particular—titled Nighthawks—was immediately familiar to me. It’s one of those paintings that I have seen hundreds of times, but if you asked me where I had seen it, I would have no clue what to tell you.
Hopper’s works are often categorized in the Realist movement of American art, yet his famous oil paintings have a particular quality of abject loneliness and isolation, making him a fitting examination for Laing’s book. Hopper himself was described as being a shy and deeply introverted loner. He had a strained and combative relationship with his wife, Josephine, to whom he was married for 43 years. This is reflected in the cold and distant expressions of the couples he painted in his art (see Summer Evening, Room in New York, or Hotel by a Railroad).
Hopper’s artwork illustrates that even in a crowded city or in a marriage or in your own mind, you can still feel alone. While I don’t often struggle with negative feelings of loneliness, I do spend a considerable amount of time alone. I think I’ve learned how to adjust to this way of living by practicing hobbies that I can do alone (reading, writing, playing or listening to music, etc.). The reality is that loneliness is incredibly common, something that we are all afflicted with at some point in our lives. With the collective societal trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic still in recent memory, this image of loneliness is all too familiar.
I like the way Laing talks about loneliness, as if it is a city in and of itself that we all occasionally visit from time to time. Some of us are forced to visit this city, and some of us choose to visit this city. I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on why I feel like I need a period of isolation in my life. I hope that by the time I return home in 2+ months, I will have some answers.
In the meantime, I have Hopper’s paintings to keep me company. If you have interest in learning more about Nighthawks or Hopper in general, I highly recommend this video by the Great Art Explained YouTube channel.
I’ll finish this writing with a quote by Edward Hopper:
“Great art is the outward expression of an inner life in the artist, and this inner life will result in his personal vision of the world.”
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In exactly one week from the time I’m writing this, I will be on an overnight flight to London.
Next Friday will be my last day in the United States for 63 days as I embark on a personal journey of worldly exploration and voluntary loneliness. In preparation for my trip, I started reading a book titled The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone by Olivia Laing. I saw it on a list of books to read when traveling alone, so I figured, why not give it a try?
In the early pages of the book, Laing dives into the artwork of Edward Hopper, one of the most famous American painters of the 20th century. At first, I did not recognize him by name. However, once I looked up his work, one painting in particular—titled Nighthawks—was immediately familiar to me. It’s one of those paintings that I have seen hundreds of times, but if you asked me where I had seen it, I would have no clue what to tell you.
Hopper’s works are often categorized in the Realist movement of American art, yet his famous oil paintings have a particular quality of abject loneliness and isolation, making him a fitting examination for Laing’s book. Hopper himself was described as being a shy and deeply introverted loner. He had a strained and combative relationship with his wife, Josephine, to whom he was married for 43 years. This is reflected in the cold and distant expressions of the couples he painted in his art (see Summer Evening, Room in New York, or Hotel by a Railroad).
Hopper’s artwork illustrates that even in a crowded city or in a marriage or in your own mind, you can still feel alone. While I don’t often struggle with negative feelings of loneliness, I do spend a considerable amount of time alone. I think I’ve learned how to adjust to this way of living by practicing hobbies that I can do alone (reading, writing, playing or listening to music, etc.). The reality is that loneliness is incredibly common, something that we are all afflicted with at some point in our lives. With the collective societal trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic still in recent memory, this image of loneliness is all too familiar.
I like the way Laing talks about loneliness, as if it is a city in and of itself that we all occasionally visit from time to time. Some of us are forced to visit this city, and some of us choose to visit this city. I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on why I feel like I need a period of isolation in my life. I hope that by the time I return home in 2+ months, I will have some answers.
In the meantime, I have Hopper’s paintings to keep me company. If you have interest in learning more about Nighthawks or Hopper in general, I highly recommend this video by the Great Art Explained YouTube channel.
I’ll finish this writing with a quote by Edward Hopper:
“Great art is the outward expression of an inner life in the artist, and this inner life will result in his personal vision of the world.”
