Edward Hopper

Edited by Wagstaff, head of exhibitions and display at the Tate Modern, this is the catalog of a recent Tate Modern exhibition on Edward Hopper that was the most comprehensive since the retrospective organized by the Whitney Museum of Art in 1981. The Whitney catalog, reprinted in 1996, offers more biographical information and a more thoroughgoing overview of Hopper's work than the current volume. This volume is also flawed in that it omits annotations of the paintings shown in the plates, on the grounds that detailed annotations are available in Edward Hopper: A Catalog Raisonné. At $750, however, the catalog raisonné is out of reach for most library budgets. Still, the text of this work offers thoughtful reflections on Hopper's work. Especially interesting are the insights into the influence of film on Hopper, as well as his impact on filmmakers, including Alfred Hitchcock and Wim Wenders. The 58 full-sized color plates are of superior quality and give a strong sampling of Hopper's most important work. Recommended for academic and public libraries.--Amy K. Weiss, Univ. of California, Santa Barbara (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.