Gas
12:00 AM
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| Edward Hopper, Gas, 1940 |
It
is this sentiment that Edward Hopper conveys in his iconic masterpiece, Gas. This composition from 1940 offers a
glimpse into the Route 66 culture, which emerged around the same time that
Hopper’s career gained traction in the art world. Everyday American life
inspired the quiet artist immensely, as evidenced by his seemingly endless
depictions of New England architecture and mundane city life. Considering his
track record, Hopper’s choice to paint America’s burgeoning highway system
seems odd at first, but then the work speaks for itself.
Among
the happy-go-lucky families on vacation and the rushed business travelers hide sufferers
of inherent loneliness: those who traverse the nation looking for answers, Jack
Kerouac-style, or those who get lost in the shuffle. Hopper decidedly focuses
on the latter. He identifies with the sole attendant who tends the three
Mobilgas pumps. Empty pavement stretches out behind him, while a forest of
ominous pines traps him in his little corner of the world. The attendant, much
like Hopper, must remain a lonely witness to the never-ending stream of passersby,
unsympathetic to the victims of wanderlust.
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