Chop Suey

Chop Suey

Artist: Edward Hopper (American, 1882 – 1967)

Date: 1929

Medium: Oil on canvas

Collection: Private collection

Description

The scene depicts two women at a table in a restaurant with another couple in the background. The only features being shown in particular detail are the painted woman’s face, the coat hanging above her, her companion’s back (to the viewer), the features of the couple in the background, the tea pot on the table, the masked lower window panel, and the restaurant sign outside. These are all features that would bring a sensory element (besides sight) to the memory painted: the buzzing noise of the outside light, the voices of the people in the background, the texture of the coat, the taste of the tea and smell of the cigarette smoke (held by the man), and the muddled light from the masked window.