American Masters

History Series / 14 Seasons

American Masters, committed to producing comprehensive film biographies about the broad cast of characters who comprise our cultural history.

1h 23m / TV-PG

A closer look at Edward Hopper's "Automat" and "Chop Suey"

1m 59s

Edward Hopper displayed a preference for quieter social commentary with his art. In "Automat," he paints a woman alone in an empty automat, conveying a sense of loneliness and isolation. In "Chop Suey," two women are depicted at lunch without male chaperones, reflecting the newfound independence many women were experiencing at the time.

Edward Hopper's work showed a narrow view of New York

2m 39s

Edward Hopper painted what he wanted to paint, showing no interest in the growing diversity of America or the social movements happening in New York City. "It's just almost comical for me to imagine Hopper, still in his button-down at his easel, when you have this great Bohemian culture happening right outside the window," says curator Kim Conaty. "And it's not really reflected in the work."

Edward Hopper's childhood in Nyack, New York

2m 3s

Edward Hopper was raised in Nyack, New York, where his creativity was fostered by his supportive parents and his childhood home influenced his interpretation of light and space in his paintings.

Edward Hopper's simple lifestyle with wife Jo

1m 55s

Edward and Jo Hopper lived an extremely frugal life, with just a hot plate to cook on and their living room used as an art studio. Hopper had a reputation for being gruff and unfriendly, while Jo loved to have drinks and chats with friends.

HOPPER: An American love story (EAD + ASL + OC Trailer)

2m 10s

Discover the secrets behind Edward Hopper’s most iconic and enigmatic works. Known for “Nighthawks” and other evocative paintings of American life, Hopper has left a lasting impression on our culture. Meet the man behind the brush, and see how his marriage to fellow artist Josephine Nivison Hopper shaped his art and career. This version contains extended audio description and ASL interpretation.

HOPPER: An American love story

1m 2s

Discover the secrets behind Edward Hopper’s most iconic and enigmatic works. Known for “Nighthawks” and other evocative paintings of American life, Hopper has left a lasting impression on our culture. Meet the man behind the brush, and see how his marriage to fellow artist Josephine Nivison Hopper shaped his art and career.

Orozco’s paintings were destroyed by U.S. customs agents

1m 19s

In 1917, José Clemente Orozco left Mexico to find a better place to make art in the United States. Along the way, Orozco was detained in Laredo, Texas, where officials took issue with many of his paintings and deemed them “immoral.”

Las pinturas de Orozco fueron destruidas en los EE. UU.

1m 19s

En 1917, José Clemente Orozco dejó México para encontrar un mejor lugar para hacer arte en Estados Unidos. En el camino, Orozco fue detenido en Laredo, Texas, donde los funcionarios objetaron muchas de sus pinturas y las consideraron “inmorales”.

La historia de “Hidalgo y la Independencia Nacional”

1m 50s

Orozco pintó uno de los murales públicos más icónicos de México, que desafió directamente a instituciones veneradas. Su formidable pintura del Padre Hidalgo, el “George Washington de la Independencia Mexicana”, representaba al líder como un profeta empuñando una espada que “purificaba el mundo con derramamiento de sangre”.

La chispa que encendió el interés de Orozco por hacer arte

1m 25s

Cuando era un joven estudiante, José Clemente Orozco quedó cautivado por el trabajo del artista mexicano José Guadalupe Posada. Su labor como ilustrador avivó la imaginación de Orozco y lo “impulsó a llenar el papel con sus primeros pequeños dibujos.”

José Clemente Orozco: Hombre de Fuego (En Español)

40s

La vida de Orozco es una de las grandes historias del arte moderno, repleta de drama, adversidad y logros extraordinarios. Un prodigioso pintor de caballete, Orozco fue, antes que nada, un artista público cuyos grandes logros incluyen murales creados no para mecenas individuales, sino para la sociedad.

José Clemente Orozco: Man of Fire

40s

The life of Mexican muralist José Clemente Orozco (1883-1949), a life filled with drama, adversity and triumph, is one of the great stories of the modern era. Despite poverty, childhood rheumatic fever that damaged his heart and an explosion in his youth that cost him his left hand, Orozco persisted in his wish to become an artist.

The spark that ignited Orozco’s interest in art making

1m 25s

As a young student, José Clemente Orozco was enchanted by the work of Mexican artist José Guadalupe Posada. His work as an illustrator stirred Orozco’s imagination and “impelled [him] to cover paper with [his] first little figures.”

The history behind one of Orozco’s most iconic paintings

1m 50s

Orozco painted one of Mexico's most iconic public murals, which directly confronted revered institutions. His fiery painting of Padre Hidalgo, the “George Washington of Mexican Independence,” depicted the leader as a prophet wielding a sword who was “purifying the world with bloodshed.” The artwork showcases Orozco's unapologetic style, characterized by sharp angles and uncompromising intensity.

Documenting the legacy of drummer Max Roach

2m 28s

Director Sam Pollard was captivated by the life story of drummer and activist Max Roach 35 years ago. "Seeing Max Roach sit behind a drum set, he had a regal quality about him," said Pollard. "And I remember saying, 'Somebody should do a film on Max Roach.'"

How Max Roach fused jazz and hip hop

2m 47s

Max Roach was excited by the premise and promise of rap when it first hit the music scene. Roach was introduced to the genre by his godson and hip hop pioneer Fab 5 Freddy, and would later collaborate with him. "The fact that he saw that vision before it became cool in the early nineties, for you to mix your hip hop and your jazz together, shows how ahead of the curve he was," said Questlove."

How Max Roach created the experimental sound of M'Boom

2m 12s

Max Roach founded M'Boom, a jazz group made up of experimental percussionists. M'Boom was his way of venturing into a more abstract, adventurous sound—including a song that recreated the sounds of a storm through music. "Max was one of the people redefining what the music is gonna be in every decade that he was active," said musician Greg Tate.

Rare footage of Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln's collaboration

25m 51s

In this excerpt from Black Journal originally released on April 27, 1970, drummer Max Roach and singer Abbey Lincoln perform at Norfolk State College in Virginia and share their thoughts on their roles as musicians. The husband and wife duo found it important to emphasize their African American heritage and musical influences.

Cesar Chavez's love of jazz and pachuco culture

3m 27s

Labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez expressed an interest in music from an early age. He grew up identifying as a pachuco, a young Mexican-American who wore zoot suits and listened to jazz, blues and swing music. "A lot of people have no idea that the leader of the Farm Workers Union was this guy that had this urban soul inside him," said filmmaker Luis Valdez.

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