Office at Night

Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (the USA).

Canvas, oil.

A few years after the Walker Center acquired this work, Hopper found it necessary to write an explanation to it. The author said that he reflected the impressions of his train journeys to New York. With the onset of darkness, the flickering office interiors he observed left fresh and vivid images. The artist depicted what was essentially a simple scene of everyday life in the office, but did so through a wide viewing angle. As a result, space is compressed, thus limiting the ability of the figures to move. This creates a psychological tension between the standing woman (obviously, the secretary) and the clerk sitting at the table. As the author commented, “My goal was to try to create a sense of a secluded office interior”.