usually, sad does not sell. i had ppl tell me my work was depressing, even tho that was rarely something is put into it, bittersweet maybe. struggle. but a lot of madonnas, smarmy i always say. but i never sold a damn thing.
i walked through a big art expo here one year and there were sexy nudes and simple line painting of nudes, most w prices double the rest, everywhere. and i just thought sexy is what sells.
shortly thereafter, i hung up my brushes.

For all that critics charge Hopper's paintings with feelings of isolation, alienation, loneliness, lack of fulfilment, urban ennui, etc, I just always equated them with (mostly) pleasant solitude.

His most famous painting, "Night Hawks", is constantly described as a pastiche of urban isolation and emotional detachment,. living life surrounded daily by millions of total strangers you will never know personally. I initially, and still to some degree today, saw the work as a moment frozen in time, a bright oasis of light, warmth, and uncomplicated companionship in a dark deserted city neighborhood. Why Hopper's painting fill others with foreboding, I'll never know; I always feel calm and relaxed when looking at them.

Which came first?

Johnny Hooker and Loretta Salino, lonely people.