#7. Space is God

The painter of faces & places and why life is always better in colour...

Aug 11, 2023

Capturing the imaginations of his audience since the 1960’s, the work of David Hockney transports us to a magical land of colour and possibility. Born in Bradford in 1937, he was the fourth of the five children of Laura and Kenneth Hockney. At eight years old, Hockney watched his father repair old bicycles, it was the notion of painting - the delicacy of the steady brush strokes that captured his imagination. Eight decades later, Hockney’s work has sold for the highest amount of any living artist to date. His most recent immersive experience ‘Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)’ explores his life and legacy.

David Hockney ‘Bigger & Smaller (not closer & further away), The Lightroom

David Hockney first entered the doors of the Royal College of Art in September 1959. His class that year included the likes of Peter Blake, Allen Jones, Frank Bowling and Peter Phillips. They later became known as ‘the artists who dominated the decade of British Art’, however many of the staff at the time we’re thought to consider them some of the ‘worst students they’d had for many years’. This time within the art world was a significant one. Wartime was a distant memory and a new wave was on the horizon. Hockney of course, was a leading figurehead in this wave.

David Hockney at The Royal College of Art, 1960

In 1964, following his graduation from the Royal College of Art, Hockney moved to Los Angeles. It is here he created what we consider today to be some of his most famous works. His pool series, demonstrated a strong connection to life living in Los Angeles. He has often described his fascination with pools and the way they formed ‘dancing lines’ on a painting. He loved that in California especially you could look through the surface of pools, as if they were glass panels. His pool series consisted of only around 12 paintings, yet it seems to be what we know Hockney best for today.

His ‘Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)’1972 sold for a whopping $80 million at auction in 2018, the most any piece has sold for by a living artist ever. Over the years, Hockney’s work has changed and evolved, just like the man himself. It is this period from around 1960 - 1970 that is arguably the most fascinating to look at. His work was vast and there was a lot of it. In 1970 Hockney had his first retrospective at The Whitechapel Gallery. His work from the previous decade filled the gallery to it’s entirety. The exhibition was an explosion of Hockney and the copious amounts of work he produced in the 60’s.

David Hockney ‘Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)’ 1972.

As we skip ahead to present day, and stand within his brand new immersive experience ‘Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)’ currently showing at The Lightroom, we are transported to a world of chaos and colour. Decades of work mean you could visit multiple times and see new works every-time. Both ‘ambitious and immersive’ Hockney and The Lightroom collaborated on this show for over three years, pulling old archive material together to create a fifty minute show split into six chapters. The show chooses to showcase just how dedicated Hockney is to new media. A huge part of what gives the exhibition its powerful vibrancy are his most recent iPad drawings. ‘The Arrival of Spring in Woldgate, East Yorkshire in 2011’ was one of the first works he created using an iPad, having experimented with brushstrokes and digital techniques for over six months previously.

‘Arrival of Spring in Woldgate, East Yorkshire in 2011’

Today, Hockney currently resides in Normandy, France. Having had over 400 solo exhibitions and 500 group exhibitions, his work as been seen by millions over the years. It becomes almost impossible to describe Hockney as an artist in just a few words. He is a painter, a print maker, a draughtsman, a photographer and much more. At the age of eighty six Hockney continues to push boundaries to this day. His most recent series, portraits of celebrities including that one of a particular Harry Styles is due to be exhibited as part of ‘David Hockney: Drawing from Life’ from 2nd November 2023 - 21 January 2024 at The National Portrait Gallery. His life and legacy continue to reign strong as he continues to be advocate for limitless opportunities within art.