During NTI online instruction, students have been learning about the work of American artist Edward Hopper (1882–1967), who produced some of the most enduringly popular images in American art. Throughout his career, he created quiet, yet riveting pictures that express both sense of isolation and uncertainty and the bittersweet comfort of solitude. It seemed to me that study of his work was timely and would resonate with student’s feelings of isolation and loneliness during the coronavirus pandemic.

Shared narratives can be found in art from many cultures and throughout time. By looking at artwork, students learn to explore diverse narratives, discover their own personal narrative, and express that narrative through their own work of art.  Hopper’s images of apartments, diners, and movie palaces reflect American urban life between the world wars, and one of his most iconic paintings is titled “Nighthawks”. For this assignment, students were asked to listen to a short video clip about “Nighthawks” from Khan Academy, featuring art historians Dr. Beth Harris & Dr. Steven Zucker. Next, they listened to NGA’s (National Gallery of Art) video entitled Edward Hopper’s New York.

Students were asked to look closely at the painting Nighthawks and predict what was going on. To get started they answered a series of prompts. Students used the answers to frame their own narrative as they drafted a short story about the image. (Resource: Art Class Curator, by Cindy Ingram).

Below are some examples of the wonderful stories students developed:

Midnight Inspiration
by Ki Rohr-Carrasquillo, 12th grade

You know, if you had told me three years ago that our country would be in the middle of the second World War, I would have said you’re crazy. We all thought that we had enough of those greasy germans. But, I will say their trouble does make my job all the easier. Even now as I am leaving the office and headed to my favorite diner, the ideas for the next day’s publication start to swim. This place was
usually barren at this time of night but I can see from a little ways away from that there are two people sitting at the bar tonight. It’s weird to see such a couple out at this time of night, you rarely saw many people celebrating because everyone and their father was away fighting the war. The woman looked to be dressed like a secretary–though a very extravagant one at that–and the man next to her seemed to
be dressed just as nicely. From outside they looked as close as could be, but when I stepped in they seemed to separate, as I had intruded on some kind of world they were the stars of. Walking up to the bar, Mr.Bates recognizes me immediately. I was in here almost every night so we had become pretty familiar with one another. I really couldn’t help feeling bad for the man, who was a widower, because his wife
fell sick of Spanish influenza back in the day. You could see the sadness in his eyes still, and the way he talked about her was the kind of way that would make anyone believe in true love. He seemed pretty silent tonight, keeping one poking eye on the couple on the other end of the bar. These two were quite the pair. I couldn’t really hear what they were whispering about, but the way they looked at each other was the kind of look you read about in those cheesy romance columns. The untold secret desires, all that stuff. I made small talk with Mr. Bates and we both had this kind of unshared curiosity about this couple. I was about one cigarette in when they decided to take their leave. When they did, it was almost as if the flood gates opened from Mr.Bates’ mouth. He started talking all about them, their story, their backgrounds. He tells me that these two have been coming in every night for the past couple of nights just after all the streets have emptied. For an old man who doesn’t bother much for anyone else’s lives, he seemed really invested in theirs. He spent a good hour telling me that they were a boss and his assistant, how her husband is off at war, and how the boss fancies her. He talks about her young boy and goes on about how the boss looks so lovingly at the woman. He talks about them with the same kind of vigor and excitement that he shows when he usually talks about his wife. If I didn’t know any better, I would think maybe he sees the love he had for his wife in these two young people. but who could ever say for sure? I left that diner a little richer than when I came in, with a new story and a closer friendship. The wonders that the night could bring. I didn’t see either of those two again at the diner, but I really do like to hope that in some ideal world they were together, sharing that love that Mr.Banks talked so fondly of, but for all that I knew, maybe they would only be those small shared whispers in that diner late at night. maybe they only really found each other at the bottom of a cup of awful diner coffee or at the buds of their cigarettes. Who can be sure of that so late at night though?

The Lady in Red
by Janiya Reed, 10th grade

It started off as any other day for Tony. He worked on finding information for his clients and reported back to them. However, he was presented with a new case that was harder to crack. A sweet woman named Emily reached out to him in hopes to find her husband. She reached out to him instead of the police because her husband’s in some illegal business. Her husband has been missing for a little over a week and has not gotten in touch with her which is out of the ordinary. So, Tony spent all day trying to find a lead or anything for that matter, but came up with nothing. He decided to take a break and go to Phillies’.
“Hey there Fred,” said Tony.
“Ohhh, look at what the cat dragged in”, chuckled Fred.
“Haha, can I get a cup of coffee please, Fred?”
“You sure can. Long day at work?”
“Yeah…something like that.”
“Well I’m here if you wanna talk about it. Here ya go.”
“Thanks, Fred”. Fred nods in return.
Tony just sits thinking. Thinking about this new case. Thinking about not disappointing his client. Thinking about life. Thinking about everything. He just doesn’t want to be a failure. A few minutes later a lady in a tight red dress and long red hair walks in with a gentleman by her side. Fred does his usual greetings and takes their order. They decide to engage in more conversation with him though…they seemed a little drunk. Tony didn’t pay much attention to it because he was lost in his thoughts. Before you knew it an hour had passed by and they were still there. Tony got up, put his tip by his coffee mug, and tipped his hat off to Fred. He walked silently out the door.
“Who’s that young man,” said Maryanne.
“Ahh, that’s my buddy Tony. Been living here ever since he was a kid. Always been around,” replied Fred.
Maryanne turned her head around and looked out the window where Tony was walking.
“I’ll be right back Todd.”
“Uhh..sure, alright,” Todd replied, taking off his hat.
Maryanne ran out the door with her heels clacking as she ran. She noticed Tony slowing down and she did too. Tony slowly turned and realized who it was.
“You were so quiet and I just had to come and talk to you,” Maryanne said with a smile.
TO BE CONTINUED….

The Alley Craft Diner
by Bless Iteka, 11th grade

It was a night like any other at the Alley Crafts Diner. I look up from organizing the counter, and in walks a man wearing a fedora. He slouches down on a bar stool, and says nothing. I though it was odd, but who isn’t? I’m John Craft, and I work here. My parents run this place and I got stuck with the graveyard shift. Before I know it, in walks an old friend of mine, Patricia. Patricia and I have been friends for a while- years! I look directly behind her and there is a guy I’ve never seen before. “John!” Patricia calls, “this is my cousin Will. He’s thinking of opening his own diner in town!” I greet will and we chat for a couple minutes. After maybe 20 minutes, Patricia announces that it’s time she and Will went back home, as it was getting late. I bid them farewell, but noticed that the guy who had entered nearly 30 minutes ago had not moved from his position. “Diner about to close” I said, “you’re gonna need to leave” the man got up slowly and started towards me. I looked around frantically, there was no one else in the diner to help me if I needed it. I grabbed a broom from behind the counter and help it in my hand, just in case. “Wait I need to ask you something” the man said. “My name is Richard and I need to work. I lost my job a few weeks ago, and it seems like all of the sudden no one needs any more workers. Do you think I could work here?” I look him down. He looks tired. “Why don’t you come back tomorrow in the morning and we’ll see what you can do” I say. He smiles and walks out the door. I guess you could say it wasn’t an ordinary night at the Alley Crafts Diner.

Jacob’s Visit
by Tyler Coffey, 9th grade

Jacob is walking down the sidewalk of his hometown that he no longer lives in. It’s a small town and everyone knows each other. It’s a friendly place. There weren’t a whole lot of people on the sidewalks like there used to be. Jacob knows some of the people there, but not many. A lot has changed in the 8 years he’s been gone. But one thing that was still there is that old coffee shop in the middle of the town. It’s like the equivalent to a barber shop in the hood. Everyone goes there, and everyone remembers everyone. Jacob visited his parents for most of the day. He just needed to walk around to see what all had changed. He sees his ex-girlfriend from almost 9 years ago, and she’s with the same guy from about 8 years and some change. Jacob has been a single man the whole time, for almost 9 years. He misses how it used to be. He finds himself walking the sidewalks for hours eventually leaving himself walking in the dark. He decides since he’s walking past the old coffee joint he’d walk in and evaluate his options. He sips on some warm coffee that his old friend Von fixed for him. Von works there now, and that is a hard job to get because the owner is picky with his employees. A couple comes in not too long after, holding hands and laughing. Jacob recognizes Cheyenne and sees that she’s with her husband Caleb. They sit down over by Von is standing, and begin to spark a conversation. All three of them know each other and have a nice talk. Jacob sits alone and knows that Cheyenne recognizes him because she looked over a couple times, with small clues and details on her face giving away her thoughts. Jacob quietly asks for a Hawiiaan mix, to get his mind off things. After he has 6 or 7, Von cut him off. Cheyenne and Caleb eventually left, giggling all the way out the door. Jacob stayed until 11:30, when they had to close. He barely is able to get up and stumbles his way out and heads back to his parents’ place. He arrived there, but didn’t want to go in like this, so he slept on the back porch. Unfortunately, it rained throughout the rest of the night after he went to sleep. But he was so drunk in his sleep he couldn’t even tell. He woke up hungover so he decided to go ahead and catch a flight back to his place where he lives alone with his husky. He calls his parents when he arrives at his place and apologizes. He told them that he’d visit again soon. He goes back to sleep listening to his favorite music, cuddled with his dog, and doesn’t bother picking up his ringing phone, especially because Cheyenne was calling.

Midnight in Manhattan
by Mackenzie Witt, 12th grade

John POV:  It was late, past 11:30. I was tired of tossing and turning in my bed. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t seem to turn off my mind, so I finally got out of bed and decided to get dressed. I headed to the diner about midnight for a late cup of coffee. Maybe all this caffeine is why I couldn’t get to sleep at night, but I didn’t care, I was addicted. 

When I walked into the small diner about a block from my apartment, I noticed Mark was working late again. After ordering  my coffee, I noticed a couple walking in–only to soon find out they were indeed not a couple, but only old friends that had bumped into each other on the street. It wasn’t hard to see that the man was in love with the woman. She just didn’t see it. I didn’t catch the man’s name but I overheard their conversation. I noticed he kept saying her name, Sue. After my second cup of coffee and hearing Sue constantly complain about the guy that just dumped her, I figured it was time to get home. I thanked Mark and heading toward my apartment to try to get some sleep.

The Diner
by Ashton Schott, 12th grade

“Ladies first,” John says as he opens up the door for his wife. “You are too sweet!” She smiles as she enters, walking as if she were on the red carpet. Mary insisted on having a dinner date with John, and he finally gave in. So, he took them to a small diner in New York, right off the corner of Brooklynn St. They sat down on the farthest side of the small restaurant, and were greeted by an older, sweet gentleman, asking how they were and if they needed anything to drink. They began to place their orders when another man walked in, alone, and sat waiting patiently for him to be waited on. After Frank, the server, took John and Mary’s order, he walked over to the man, introducing himself. “Tim’s the name, nice to meet you Frank. Can I just have the Cheese Danish with a ice water to drink?” Frank nodded and smiled, “Of course, I’ll have your food and water out soon. It’ll be just a moment.” Frank placed the orders to the kitchen in the back, and came back out to wipe the table. Once the orders were ready, Frank delivered the food to all three of them, never forgetting to say, “I hope you enjoy!”, and smile. After everyone had left the diner. Frank closed up, threw off his apron and hat, and went home. 

Untitled
by Seth Carter, 11th

The ring of the bell echoes through the silent cafe. Suddenly the couple, laughing, fill the room with their conversation. They walk past a lonely man, sipping his coffee. They ask the man behind the counter for two coffees. The solo man is irritated with the two, just wanting to sit in silence. The working man brings them their coffees and then works on cleaning the other parts of the counter. Not long after entering, the lady wants to leave. They barely get into their coffees and they are still mostly full. The man of the couple leaves a generous tip, most likely not noticing due to his fiancé pulling him to leave. After another half hour the man closes up shop and tells the lonely man he has to leave. They both go home to empty houses.

Late Nights at the Diner
by Reese Hill, 9th

James goes to the diner and orders a cup of coffee. Annie came in and said “hi” to Oliver because she comes there a lot. James immediately noticed how beautiful Annie was. But by being antisocial, he just sat there. Shortly after, Jeff comes in and begins to talk to Annie. They started to fall in love.

The Diner of the Working Class
by Jeffrey Cox

Douglas, James and Donna just got off work after a long, busy week.. All three worked in downtown New York City. Frank and Douglas told Donna about this diner called Phillies, that was 2 blocks down from the bank. So they decided to go there for dinner. As they all arrived at the diner, they met James. James just got hired a few weeks ago, making 30 cents an hour. He enjoyed his job because he was a people person. Douglas wasn’t sitting with Donna and Frank. Douglas had a bad week because of his decrease in sales; so he decided to sit alone that night. 

The Heartbreak Diner
by Shelby Jackson, 12th grade

It’s a calm night in the city. An old man named Gerbel is working late at night. He’s been working at the diner since his wife fell ill. Gerbel spots a man named Craig who seems to be worried about something. Craig asks for a coffee. His phone was on the table. It seems to ring every other second, so he turns it down. He looked at Gerbel and he says, “wive’s right.” Gerbel smiles, looks down and hands him the coffee. Craig says that same line every night as he sits here. He twiddles his thumb when two more people come in. They are presumed to be a couple, but Gerbel has seen Rick before with another woman who has a large diamond ring. The woman Rick is with tonight is his mistress, Blanche. They are on a date. Gerbel takes their order as Blanche begins to ask Rick why they only go out at night. This sparks a little argument between the two. Rick quietly explains to her that soon, he and his wife will get a divorce and they will be together. That makes her smile. Gerbel passes them their plates, and they enjoy talking for the rest of the night. When everyone leaves, Gerbel cleans up and closes the diner, and goes to comfort his sick wife.