THE ORIGINAL - Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks"

Nighthawks by Edward Hopper, 1942 - Art Institute of Chicago

What I have always loved about Edward Hopper's paintings is the mood he created.  In his images of melancholy figures set against lonely cityscapes, he describes the feeling of separation and detachment that modern life has created; he tells stories of people isolated as much by their busy lifestyles, as by the structures that surround them.  His most famous work, Nighthawks (pictured above) evokes this mood perfectly.

And then there are the parodies - the most famous of which is the ever-popular Boulevard of Broken Dreams, which replaces Hopper's everyday folks with famous dead film icons (James Dean, Humphrey Bogart, Marilyn Monroe, and Elvis Presley as the soda-jerk)!  Painted by Gottfried Helnwein in 1984, this print made its way from thousands of swap-meets and mall art galleries, into millions of hip bachelor pads and young couples' first apartments throughout the 80's and 90's.

Helnwein's famous parody

Due to the popularity of the Boulevard of Broken Dreams print (and the fact that pop-punk group Green Day put out a #1 hit by the same name), Hopper's original piece seems to have gotten buried by time and overriding popular culture.  More sad than the fact that most people I talk to believe the Helnwein parody to be the original work, is that the delicate subtlety and anonymity of the figures in Hopper's piece are totally removed - replaced by globally recognizable celebrities.

But let's not be too hard on ol' Helnwein.  Just check out his portfolio and you will see that there is nothing cheesy or clichéd about his work.  Boulevard of Broken Dreams seems to have been a bit of a departure for the German-born artist.  I suspect that his motivations were probably more intended to pay homage to the US-born Hopper and to American pop culture, rather than to eclipse this exquisite original.

article author: Desiree Guerrero

my personal favorite, "Nighthogs" by Matt Groening

NOTE: The Art Institute of Chicago acquired Nighthawks in 1942, where it has remained a part of it's permanent collection. Read more about this work on their website.