Hopeless is a painting created in 1963 using oil paint and acrylic paint on canvas by Roy Lichtenstein. The painting is part of the Kunstmuseum Basel's collection.

Background

The word "Hopeless" comes from a drawing by Tony Abruzzo in the comic story "Run For Love!" from Secret Hearts no. 83 (November 1962), published by DC Comics.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, some American painters began using images and themes from comic strips in their art. In 1958, Roy Lichtenstein created drawings of comic characters. In 1960, Andy Warhol painted in a similar style. Lichtenstein, who did not know about Warhol's work, made paintings called Look Mickey and Popeye in 1961. During the early 1960s, Lichtenstein painted several "fantasy drama" scenes showing women in love relationships with strong, controlling men, which made the women unhappy. Examples include Drowning Girl, Hopeless, and In the Car. These paintings led to later works in 1964 that showed "girls next door" in different emotional situations. For instance, in Hopeless and Drowning Girl (both from the same comic source), the women appear as victims of unhappy love stories. One shows helplessness, while the other shows defiance, as she would rather drown than ask for help from her lover.

Some of Lichtenstein's most famous works from the mid-1960s include comic-style paintings of girls with speech bubbles, such as Drowning Girl, Hopeless, Oh, Jeff…I Love You, Too…But…, In the Car, and We Rose Up Slowly. These paintings often feature everyday people in situations that appeal to the viewer’s sense of self. Between 1962 and 1963, Lichtenstein imitated four paintings by Pablo Picasso. Picasso’s images of sad, crying women may have influenced Lichtenstein’s own depictions of women in distress, such as those in Hopeless (1963) and Drowning Girl (1963). Another possible reason Lichtenstein focused on showing troubled women in the early to mid-1960s was that his first marriage was ending during this time. He was married to Isabel Wilson from 1949 to 1965, and they had two sons together.

Critical commentary

"Hopeless" is a common example of Lichtenstein's Romance comics, showing a woman with tearful eyes and a sad expression taking up most of the painting. Lichtenstein changed the original comic by using bright colors and strong, wavy lines to make the emotions in the scene more powerful. This artwork is seen as an important step forward in how Lichtenstein used shape, color, arrangement, and the strength of the image. In works like "Hopeless," Lichtenstein created lasting art from a temporary type of entertainment, while keeping the original comic scene mostly the same. This particular comic is a common example of a dramatic love story scene that was typical during that time.