Couple Drinking by Edward Hopper

The revival of manners illustration and the piquant description of the pleasures of Parisian life characterize this youthful work of great graphic freedom. Within the composition entitled “Couple Drinking”, the independent illustrator Edward Hopper stages a festive encounter in the heart of a popular entertainment establishment. The painting departs from subsequent American scenes to propose a fluid and dynamic drawing that celebrates the complicity of a city couple.

Two characters with animated and jovial expressions are settled around a small circular light wooden pedestal table in the foreground. On the left, a mustachioed man wearing a dark cap and a brown jacket smiles at the viewer, a cigarette at the corner of his lips and his hands placed near a large glass. Facing him, on the right, an elegant brunette woman with her hair styled in a voluminous swept-up bun tilts her torso, sporting a white blouse with a misty collar and a long gray skirt. With her raised right hand, she delicately brandishes a goblet of clear drink in a gesture of toast or greeting. The plain background of clean cream-white beautifully highlights the sharp contours drawn in ink.

The craftsman’s manual skill resplends in the caricaturish precision of the faces and the fluidity of the light draperies of the female dress. His mixed technique combining ink and gouache confers an expressive realism and great freshness upon the visual composition. This meticulous execution bears witness to a remarkable technical expertise.