by Gail Levin
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Product Description
"A definitive biography." Robert Hughes, Time "A nearly flawless account of a remarkable artist . . . a compelling and accessible narrative for anyone even remotely interested in modern American art." Michael Kammen, The New York Times Book Review This acclaimed biography of Edward Hopper is essential reading for anyone interested in the world-famous realist artist. This second, expanded edition doubles the number of illustrations, and includes a new section of paintings in color. A newly added section on Hopper's international influence on culture, especially on contemporary art, poetry, and cinema, makes this edition unique. The original biography (Edward Hopper: An Intimate Biography, Knopf, 1995) has long been considered the seminal review of Edward Hopper's life and work. The biography's focus is the laconic, introverted painter's stormy forty-three-year marriage to outspoken and gregarious Josephine ("Jo") Nivison, herself an artist, and draws extensively on Jo Hopper's intimate diaries, which she kept from the early 1930s until shortly before her death in 1968 (just 10 months after her husband died).
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
 Much ado about nothing...., 2008-07-21
A very long book about a very uninteresting man that painted flat lifeless pictures, and who was a pig to his wife...save your money....take your wife to dinner with the money this book costs!
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
 The book reads like a Hopper painting, 2007-08-28
Do not be intimidated by this book's length. I am not an art buff, but have become interested in Hopper and plan to attend the upcoming exhibition of his work at the National Gallery of Art in DC this Fall.
I approached this book with trepidation, but found myself drawn into it. I read it compulsively to the finish. There is tremendous detail presented in a simple austere style. It tries to make Hopper's life speak for itself. Thus, the book is a work of art about it's subject--a Hopper.
My only caveat is that you must also have a separate copy of Hopper's works (or at least many of them) to consult. Surprisingly and I think mistakenly, the book does not include copes of the many of the paintings. However, if you are familiar with his work, this is no impediment.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
Two Comedians In Love - Edward and Josephine Hopper, 2002-12-28
Gail Levin's book -Edward Hopper: an Intimate Biography- is about the life of a famous artist, Edward Hopper, as well as that of an obscure artist, Josephine Hopper (the former Josephine Nivison). Mrs. Hopper's detailed diaries, kept up faithfully for decades, are a major source of information for Levin's book. Since this necessarily puts the perspective of the book heavily on Jo's side of the story, no one should consider this one-stop shopping for finding out what made Edward Hopper tick. The Hoppers were a two completely opposite personalities who both complemented and aggravated each other. What I most like about Levin's book is that probably no one else has ever been in Jo Hopper's corner before Levin. Jo usually comes off as the stereotypical shrewish wife who dominated her poor henpecked husband. What a different picture is presented in this book! Instead, their marriage was much more complex, and the love/hate dynamics never seem to have leveled off during the many years they were together. Their story defies my own stereotypcial notion that as people grow old, their emotions level off and they are like two old bookends. Not with these two! I also enjoyed finding out that Edward Hopper was a Bette Davis fan, that he liked Jo to wear her hair down, that Jo's idea of cooking was opening up cans, and that Hopper had to haul buckets of coal up from the basement to feed the coal stove that heated their studio/living quarters. Much of these intimate details are provided courtesy of Jo's diaries, which served as an outlet and a refuge from her stolid husband. Perhaps best of all is the theatricality and eroticism suggested by Jo's descriptions of how they worked together as she posed for many of his paintings. In one of Edward Hopper's last paintings, Two Comedians, he portrays two shy actors taking a little bow: a loving tribute to their long and histrionic collaboration together, in life and in art.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
 An interesting glimpse into the life of an American artist., 2001-01-03
Gail Levin's biography is a thorough review of Edward Hopper's life and work, spanning his early childhood, his struggles as an artist paying the bills by illustrating for magazines, his success, and his consistently remarkable artistic output. The surprise for me came from the revelation that his wife Jo, usually a marginal and minor figure, was a remarkable woman and an artist herself. Although one is tempted to wonder how her career would have gone if she hadn't married Hopper, Levin avoids sensationalistic speculation and, aside from occasional comments, sticks strictly to the facts.
4 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
Edward Hopper: An Intimate Biography, 2000-10-30
While the book was interesting it was also redundant of some of Ms. Levin's other works. Unfortunately, I believe she got at least one fact messed up, which, of course is curious, and, makes one wonder if anyone is doing any editing out there. At 45 bucks a pop, you'd think someone would be doing some fact checking. I believe I'm correct in pointing out that Christian Hopper was Edward Hopper's grandfather, not great-grandfather as she so states. His father was Garrett Henry Hopper. His father was Christian Hopper. Christian Hopper married Charity Blauvelt, and together they had Garrett Henry Hopper, who, together with Elizabeth Smith Hopper, had Edward Hopper. I thought some of the events like Jo's trying to get the car out of the garage were a riot, not to mention hearing about her cat, Arthur. Unfortunately, Arthur disappears about midway. Leaves you wondering if she named him after Chester A. Arthur, Arthur Godfrey, etc. He had an odd sense of humor, but he was Dutch and you know how they are. Not too abnormal, tho. Your typical stingy, grumpy man who hasn't a clue about women. Other than that, it was a good read.
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