Boulevard of Broken Dreams- Lighted Picture

Size: 24"x36"

"Dream as if you'll live forever...Live as if you'll die today". Elvis, Marilyn, Bogie and James Dean share their common tales in this classic Diner scene painted by Gottfried Helnwein. We've framed this popular art print with Blue and Yellow Neon lighting to bring the scene alive. Blue and Yellow Neon Picture. Blue and Yellow neon tubes accent window sills. Click here for .

Painter Edward Hopper is the original artist of a classic American painting called "Nighthawks" created in 1942. The artwork depicts a waiter in an all-white uniform behind a bar serving three patrons late at night. The all night diner features seamless windows that extend from waist high to ceiling. The viewer can see everything. A man appears in a suit and hat sitting alone in a contemplative pose. A younger couple is depicted on the opposing side. All these four night owls appear lost in their own thoughts. Each seems as separate and remote from the viewer as they are from one another. Admittedly, the somber emotions Hopper was trying to portray were loneliness and emptiness in the current urban World. Remember the mood at the time. This was 1942 just after the attack on Pearl Harbor. It was a time of great fear and anxiety in America. The outcome of the war wasn't at all assured. The painting, according to Hopper, is about wartime alienation and separation.

Look at the warm light of the Diner and compare with the building's exterior. One can almost get a sense of the quiet conversation that might be taking place within. There is no door leading into the Diner. Everything that is non-essential has been striped away. Notice how the warm light from within spills out to create a complex series of muted shadows on the sidewalk. A store is depicted across the street with a lonely cash register as its only contents. It's night time and there is an eerie silence. One is led to imagine what life might be like on this street during the day. Did the couple come in together? Or did they just meet? Why is the suited gentleman sitting alone? Hopper creates no clear narrative. The only thing clear is the sense of isolation...and apparent alienation. Again, think back to the time. It's the middle of World War II. Most of the cities had emptied. Many were serving in the armed forces overseas.

Fun fact: You might be interested to know the red-haired woman in the Nighthawks painting was actually Hopper's wife "Jo".