Imagine: The Mysterious Mr Hopper

A new series of Alan Yentob's arts strand kicks off with a profile of iconic American artist Edward Hopper, famous for works such as Nighthawks.

Hopper and his wife kept themselves to themselves, the high point of their social life being eating in diners and going to the flicks.

Film noir influenced Hopper's work, as is evidenced by the way shafts of light play across his paintings, but he was also an inspiration to directors. The house in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, for example, bears more than a passing resemblance to Hopper's painting House by the Railroad.

So what were Hopper's distinctive works, depicting lonely 20th century Americans, all about? "All the sweltering, tawdry life of the American small town," said the artist, "and behind it all, the sad desolation of our suburban landscape." Wow, what an upbeat chap.