Edward Hopper (1882 -1967) is a famous American painter, well known for his pictures of loneliness which were embedded the aesthetics of American life which covers the period from the Great Depression to Post World War II.
“Nighthawks” is undoubtedly one of the most emblematic of Hopper's works. Some customers are sitting in an afterhours cafe. The scene is framed in light green hues. The picture apparently tells the interaction established between a client and the employee. The waiter is busy but looking at a customer, who, in turn, looks back. The customer is accompanied by a woman dressed in red who is looking at the nails of her right hand with a distracted attitude, while with the other hand she is touching the man in a gesture indicating an intimate relationship. The third client doesn’t seem to be concerned about what is happening.
Hopper used to say that he was painting thoughts but not facts. This can help to explain why in the picture, which describes an apparently normal scene, the artist manages to convey the coldness and strangeness of the atmosphere, and makes the viewer remain caught asking for answers. "Probably I was unconsciously painting the loneliness of a large city" said Hopper about “Nighthawks”.
The cafe has actually existed in Lower Manhattan. It was closed in 1960 to build the Twin Towers. “Nighthawks” is also associated with the short story by Hemingway "A clean, well-lighted place," which tells just such a scene in an afterhours bar. Hopper read it probably as inspiration for his work.
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