BORN IN BRADFORD

David Hockney was born in 1937 in Bradford – a Northern city in the UK, known as the ‘wool capital of the world’ during the Industrial Revolution. He began drawing at a young age, pushing a pram of art materials around the city and documenting its coal-blackened streets. In 1953, he joined Bradford School of Art where he spent four years practising life drawing and traditional techniques. Today, near to Bradford in Saltaire you can find Salts Mill, a former mill turned arts centre which is home to one of the world’s largest Hockney collections.

FIGURING IT OUT

Hockney’s next stop was the Royal College of Art in London, where he dabbled in Abstract Expressionism – the art movement of the day popularised by New York painters such as Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko. Abstract Expressionism is characterised by emotion, spontaneity and a move away from recognisable subjects (non-representational art). However, Hockney was increasingly drawn to the human figure as a subject.

Abandoning abstraction, he turned instead to a myriad of other influences – including painters Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Vincent Van Gogh as well as poets Walt Whitman and Constantine Cavafy. Later in life, he honoured his debt to Picasso in The Student, Homage to Picasso (1973) and Artist and Model (1973-4), and to Matisse in The Dancers II (2014).

HOCKNEY’S SIGNATURE STYLE

By the 1960s, the Pop Art movement was in full swing. Inspired by advertising and the everyday, Pop Artists took mass and popular culture as a subject – a direct response to the perceived elitism of Abstract Expressionism and its focus on the emotions of the artist. Hockney emerged out of this changing art scene, working alongside the early British Pop Artists. Over half a century later, the art world has changed again, and Hockney remains as relevant as ever.

So, what is his signature style? Hockney’s paintings swim with gorgeous colours. He chooses everyday objects, scenes and people as his subjects, creating bright, vibrant depictions of the world around us. His work is so popular, in part, because much of it radiates joy.

Hockney is also notable for how he plays with perspective. His works often incorporate multiple viewpoints, manipulating a single static image so that it appears brimming with movement – like life itself.

FROM YORKSHIRE TO L.A. TO NORMANDY

Hockney’s most famous paintings are rooted in a sense of place. His first visit to New York inspired A Rake’s Progress (1961–2) – after the eighteenth-century series of paintings by William Hogarth – which tells the semi-autobiographical story of a young, gay artist struggling to make his way in the city.

After finishing art school, Hockney moved to L.A., entranced by the optimism and light of sun-soaked California. He began to experiment with painting water and produced a series of paintings of swimming pools including A Bigger Splash (1967).

Despite his life in L.A., Hockney remained drawn to Yorkshire. On visits home, he drove through East Yorkshire, stopping by the side of the road to capture the open skies of summer or a solitary lane in winter. During the COVID pandemic, Hockney settled in Normandy, where he once again found inspiration in the changing seasons after years of living in an endless Californian summer.

PARENTS, FRIENDS, LOVERS AND DOGS

Hockney is also known for his portraits – of himself, friends, lovers, parents and his two dachshunds Stanley and Boodgie. In the 60s, when homosexuality was still illegal in Britain, Hockney painted several portraits that celebrate gay love, intimacy and the male form. He has painted the odd celebrity including, most recently, Harry Styles.

EMBRACING THE IPAD

Throughout his life, Hockney has embraced new technologies and media in his work – from the photocopier to the fax machine to the iPhone. In 2009, he began experimenting with an app called Brushes on his iPhone before purchasing an iPad in 2010, which led to the iconic series The Arrival of Spring.

During the COVID lockdown, Hockney took his iPad paintings to a new level with his longest work yet, A Year in Normandie (2021). He joined multiple iPad paintings together to create a 90-metre-long frieze that portrays the changing seasons. Inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry, A Year in Normandie reflects Hockney’s tendency to combine both traditional and new art methods.

AN IMMERSIVE FUTURE

Hockney’s output is wonderfully varied and extends far beyond the portraits, landscapes and swimming pools that made his name. Over the years, he has designed playful sets for the Met Opera, designed the Queen’s Window in Westminster Abbey and even curated an issue of French Vogue. So, what next for Britain’s most famous living artist?

Building on his lifelong fascination with perspective, Hockney has turned his attention to the growing world of immersive art. In 2023, Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away) premiered at Lightroom. Now the audiovisual experience comes to Aviva Studios, taking over the huge Warehouse space for the festive period. At 87, Hockney is still pushing the boundaries of what we think of as art.

David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away) runs at Aviva Studios from 10 December 2024 to 25 January 2025.