Edward Hopper painted Nighthawks between the end of December 1941 and the third week of January 1942. The painting was one of his favorites and is considered his masterpiece.

He said he was inspired by a restaurant on Greenwich Avenue in NYC and that it "seems to be the way I think of a night street". The hashtags #movieatmosphere refer to the love of Hopper for movies and #storytelling and #writingwithabrush are based on his quote "if If you could say it in words there would be no reason to paint”.

His wife Jo Hopper, who modeled for all the women in his paintings, was the one who picked the title of the painting which gives another clue about the story of these characters. She was also the one who recommended Daniel Catton Rich, director of the Art Institute of Chicago, to see it. He did and declared it was "fine as a Homer" and purchased it for the museum.

Alfred Barr Director of the MoMa was another supporter of the artist and said Hopper was "the most exciting painter in America”.

​

 

Source:

Edward Hopper an intimate biography, Gail Levin, 1995

Edouard and Jo at the Coffee Place, 2020, 

Acrylic on canvas, 40" x 30" (102 x 76 cm)