Skip to Main Content

Hell Hole

1917
(American, 1871–1951)
America, 20th century
etching and aquatint
Platemark: 20.1 x 24.9 cm (7 15/16 x 9 13/16 in.); Sheet: 27.5 x 33.7 cm (10 13/16 x 13 1/4 in.)
Gift of Ralph King 1926.123
© Delaware Art Museum / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Catalogue raisonné: Morse 186
State: II/II
Location: not on view
This artwork is known to be under copyright.

Download, Print and Share

Did You Know?

The Golden Swan, or Hell Hole bar, depicted here, was the inspiration for the saloon in the Eugene O’Neill’s play The Iceman Cometh,written in 1939.

Description

The Golden Swan bar, nicknamed the Hell Hole, was a gathering place for the Ashcan artists, writers, and intellectuals in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village. John Sloan’s etching shows the back room of the establishment, which allowed female patrons and was patrolled by the bouncers known as Lefty Louis and John Bull, seen at the doorway. The cheerful clientele enjoy alcohol, intimate conversation, and heavy flirtation. Sloan depicted the playwright Eugene O’Neill at the upper right, whose plays include characters on the fringes of society. Sloan’s use of aquatint, a printmaking technique that creates tone in the image, adds to the smoky atmosphere of the late-night scene.
Hell Hole

Hell Hole

1917

John Sloan

(American, 1871–1951)
America, 20th century

See Also

Visually Similar Artworks

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.