Church of San Esteban 1946

Edward Hopper made this painting of the Church of San Esteban in black and white, with oil on canvas. Look at those bold, architectonic shapes, right? I can imagine Hopper standing before this scene, squinting, simplifying the world into these stark forms. What's amazing here is how he takes something so solid—a church, mountains—and makes it feel like a fleeting moment. There’s something both monumental and transient about the painting, like it’s not really "about" the church, but more about the act of seeing, and how light can transform everything it touches. See how the brushstrokes create these planes of light and shadow? They’re almost abstract, like Hopper is playing with how much information we need to recognize a place. It reminds me of some of the early abstractionists playing with perspective, trying to see the world anew. Hopper’s definitely in conversation with them, but he's also doing his own thing, capturing a certain mood, a certain quality of light that’s uniquely his.