Notes

Learn To Malding Like Hemingway
A few weeks ago, they requested for me to compose an essay on a painting by Hopper and one of the Nighthawks, and I, as an excellent researcher, went to learn more. Because it is known or at the least learn by experience, that in order to appreciate a painting it is necessary to know the history of the painting, the author and above all the context within which he painted it. It is surely something universal, transversal to the space and time, making it readable over the course of hundreds of years. The interpretations, however, are subject to change as society and the world change and what was once able to be seen clearly, possibly decades after, is not evident. What was not considered before, today could reveal the process to us in a completely different way.

Re-defining a piece of work in the course of time

This is a bit like what I think happens when you look at Hopper's " Nighthawks" which was closed by the bar late in the night, in that window, which resembles a fish tank, in the location of the characters that are that are observed.

I believe that in this painting, Hopper would have wanted to provide space for the viewer to allow him to observe the silent, detailed and calm scene presented to us by the darkness.

This space, conceived for an active viewer may be the most important element, which allows the painting to be changed in the course of time, and to be timeless, immortal contemporary, and modern.

The piece, which was created in 1942, isn't immediately attributable to a precise historical moment However, it is believed that its dating is changeable according to the changes in the viewer, depending on the exact time at the period in which the work is viewed.


I believe this is the key to reading, the time and space occupied by the observer that Hopper wanted to create.

I'll explain.

In my research for information and news about Hopper's " Nighthawks" I was able to be aware of how many people have described the film by highlighting these aspects:

"[...] the feeling of emptiness of a world whose shimmering patina starts to lose its luster. [...] The distinctively commercial character lies, the myths rip off their masks and reveal a displaced reality, without any valid reference points , immobilized by uncertainty and lack of conscience. "

Night and transformation
I think this interpretation is a little ambiguous and, therefore, it's an interpretation influenced from the socio-cultural context and by the dating associated with the work that took place in it was the United States between the 40s and 50s during the period of economic growth which redefined the social and cultural assets in the life of people in a society that was even a little bourgeois, in which nightclubs are seen as places of loneliness, despair and existential emptiness.

It's true in a certain degree, and slightly not.

First time that I saw this painting, without having studied it, it gave me lots of peace and joy, thanks to its bright contrast and its nighttime stillness.

Perhaps, as a resident of an extremely noisy and crowded metropolis, the night is one of those times when I can experience the city with more peace with fewer people in the area, fewer cars as well as less noise. There are also more space between the streets to make the most of, and where to stay , under the night sky that is starless. The night is a different meaning to me than those who went to bars in the United States during the 40s as the sun's path down, the city transforms its appearance, and streets become more open and simple.

We must not forget how society has changed through more than a half century of social and cultural changes. This is the case that occurred between Pop as well as Rock culture, between psychedelic movement as well as the decade 2000.

Personally, as a daughter of the 90s, I was also a night-time kid, and by growing up I mean all the "formative" experiences that the night gave me. It is for me normal to go out after dark usually walking around the neighborhood, and on Saturdays looking for the perfect party, dancing until dawn, riding a motorbike or driving around in search of the last bar that is open to grab the bread or hot pizza, where to drink the last glass and smoke the last puff before dawn was set. From the 80s and afterward, the night no longer from frightening those who stayed home (let's take a look at the anti-prohibitionism movement and jazz movement and the Cursed Poets all of them perfect nights owls) and it became the cradle where many personalities of the world find comfort and peace of other nighthawks.

Hopper's modern realist style
Nowadays Hopper's painting reminds me of a variety of scenes from modern life. It makes me almost happy and, in all likelihood, compassionate, especially with the final three characters who engage in a chat while the bartender clears the bar in order to conclude the day and then open another. People who are nocturnal seek peace in the silence of the nocturnal company, meditate on their lives observing them through a glass and form a group of the night, accepting all and not judging anyone. It is no coincidence that in the most ancient ancestral civilizations such as the Indian one the time between midnight and sunrise is known as Brahmamuhurta which is also known as the time of Brahma which is the ideal time to dedicate yourself to prayer, meditation studying, and contemplation. In this space of time the energy levels are higher as well as intense but with an ethereal, spiritual focus.

I don't see any solitude or absence in the painting of Hopper. I also found it among the streets that were gentrified in the night quarters, as even the right-thinking citizens began going out at night.

So that, even the most popular and historic areas were transformed into showcases for the consumer as the spontaneous gatherings of people who gathered in the square had to rearrange themselves into lines waiting to be seated; and the music of the drums along the other side of the street was drowned out by the police sirens. malding scares me today, that the night is desnatured by its sacred timeless atmosphere, by its being an occasion of aggregation for lone wolves, and becoming another uncover productive gear of the system that demands transparency and respectability in the darkest parts in the city.


Read More: https://www.openlearning.com/u/sawyerquinlan-r1i1gm/blog/MaldingItLessonsFromTheOscars