1929
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Lighthouse Village (also known as Cape Elizabeth) is a 1929 by Edward Hopper, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a white lighthouse perched on a grassy hill, a few small buildings clustered around it, and a quiet road leading down to the sea. Hopper painted this spot twice—once in oil, then again in watercolor. The second time, he focused on the mix of buildings: the keeper’s house, the coast guard homes, even the fog signal tower. Each one has its own shape and job, but together they feel lonely. If you like this quiet American scene, look up more work by Edward Hopper (American, 1882–1967).
Edward Hopper made this watercolor during the last of several painting excursions that he took to Maine. He had painted the lighthouse at Cape Elizabeth once two years before, but found the structure so interesting that he returned to it in this drawing. Hopper was especially attracted to the varying green tones of the grass and the combination of buildings, each with a different purpose, including one where the lighthouse keepers slept and the three at the bottom where coast guard families lived. He used a slightly different tone of watercolor for each of the structures to accurately convey…
In an interview published in 1962, Edward Hopper described this watercolor's setting, saying that "I like Maine very much but it gets so cold in fall."
Read the full account in the museum source.
Edward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was an American realist painter and printmaker.
See the richer artist pageYour cart is empty
Explore artworks →
