(Studies of Cows)

1915–1923

Turning to etching

At an impasse over his oil paintings, in 1915 Hopper turns to etching; by 1923 he has produced most of his approximately 70 etchings, many of them urban scenes of Paris and New York, as well as some posters for the war effort.

summer 1923

Gloucester: meeting Josephine again, and the watercolours

In the summer of 1923, on a painting trip to Gloucester, Hopper re-encounters the artist Josephine Nivison; with her encouragement he turns to watercolour, producing numerous scenes of Gloucester. They marry a year later, with the artist Guy Pène du Bois as best man.

1923

The Brooklyn Museum buys “The Mansard Roof”

With Josephine's help six of Hopper's Gloucester watercolours are admitted to an exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum, and one of them, “The Mansard Roof”, is bought by the museum for its permanent collection for $100; the critics generally rave about his work.

1924

Every watercolour sold: farewell to illustration

At a one-man show with his dealer Frank Rehn in 1924 Hopper sells all his watercolours and finally decides to put illustration behind him; his financial stability will let him live a simple, stable life and keep creating art in his personal style for four more decades.

9 July 1924

Married: Josephine Hopper

1931

The Whitney and the Met pay thousands for his work

In 1931, during the Great Depression, major museums, including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, pay thousands of dollars for Hopper's works; that year he sells 30 paintings, 13 of them watercolours.