Morning Sun (painting)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Morning Sun | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Edward Hopper |
| Year | 1952 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Movement | Realism |
| Location | Columbus Museum of Art |
Morning Sun is a 1952 realist painting by Edward Hopper. Hopper often painted scenes of everyday American life in the 20th century.[1]
It joined the Columbus Museum of Art's collection in 1954, when it was bought for $3,500,[2][3] equivalent to $41,961 in 2025.[4] Morning Sun has been on loan from the Columbus Museum of Art a number of times; it has been to museums in Japan, Mexico, France, England, Switzerland, and Germany.[5]
Lighting
In Morning Sun, a woman is shown sitting on her bed facing sunlight coming in from the window. She is wearing a coral-colored dress and her hair is in a simple bun. Her face, in profile, has a contemplative expression.[6]
The woman is Hopper's wife, Jo, who modeled for most of his paintings.[1] At the time of the painting, she was 69 years old, yet she is depicted in an idealized, youthful form.[2]
Hopper was known for his expert use of light to frame his subjects. In Morning Sun, bright yellow sunlight filters in from an open window. There are shadows cast under the woman and on the wall, creating depth in the painting.
Analysis
Hopper's paintings often depict one solitary figure. The loneliness evoked in his paintings create an uncanny urban scene.
The painting may be a reference to Edgar Degas’s Woman at a Window. It is known that his wife Jo gifted him a book on Degas's art before he created Morning Sun. Both Degas's and Hopper's paintings feature a woman whose profile is highlighted by a nearby window.[2]