Behind closed doors...

The Edward Hopper exhibit, the first art exhibit I have ever entered, was intriguing. Every time I moved from one painting to another, I was in another life, each painting represented a life of its own, each telling a story. It fascinated me how much a painting can tell about itself and the painter. It translated everyday life into a picture.

Many paintings captured my attention, but there were two that stood out. A sense of sadness and loneliness rushed through me once I saw them. One of them was a painting of Edward Hopper "New York Interior", it seemed to show the lives of New Yorkers, well the lives of people in big cities as well. 

The woman in the painting seemed to show loneliness, with her back facing the people and her head down, she doesn't seem to be happy. Within this large city behind closed doors, the life and lights of the city in the streets disappears into darkness and loneliness. This is a reality whether in New York or cities like Dubai, there are people who seem to be full of life but go home into an empty house with no one but themselves to keep entertained.

Then there was a portrait of a clown called the "Clown in his Dressing Room" by Walt Kuhn. Clowns are usually portrayed as funny, cheerful and happy people who loves making people laugh. But behind this cheerfulness, there was so much sadness in the eyes of the clown, it looked like he was trapped in something he couldn't get out of. It doesn't seem to be fair for someone who makes people laugh to be so despairing. Behind closed doors, the doors of merely his dressing room, is a lonely person. There are times we forget that clowns are also human, that they tend to have emotions as well as needs. A lot of them live alone with no children or family, sometimes they only live in their dressing rooms.

Truly no one ever knows what goes on in people's minds or what they are going through whether it be clowns or just ordinary people in the streets. They all have a story of their own.