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The World According to David Hockney
"I’ve always been a looker . . . that’s what artists do." "The eye is always moving; if it isn’t moving you are dead"— to artistic insights such as "painted color always will be better than printed color, because it is the pigment itself", as well as musings on other image makers, including Caravaggio, Paul Cézanne, and Walt Disney, David Hockney has a knack for capturing profound truths in pithy statements. Born in Bradford, England, in 1937, Hockney attended art school in London before moving to Los Angeles in the 1960s. There, he painted his famous swimming pool paintings, and since then has embraced a range of media, including photocollage, video, and digital technologies. In a 2011 poll of more than 1,000 British artists, Hockney was voted the most influential British artist of all time. Presented as a beautifully designed and attractive package, illustrated with works of art from throughout Hockney’s career, this is the perfect gift for art lovers everywhere.
- GenresNonfictionArt
176 pages, Hardcover
Published September 10, 2024
10 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
About the author
David Hockney
204 books141 followersDavid Hockney was born in Bradford, England, on July 9, 1937. He loved books and was interested in art from an early age, admiring Picasso, Matisse and Fragonard. His parents encouraged their son’s artistic exploration, and gave him the freedom to doodle and daydream.
Hockney attended the Bradford College of Art from 1953 to 1957. Then, because he was a conscientious objector to military service, he spent two years working in hospitals to fulfill his national service requirement. In 1959, he entered graduate school at the Royal College of Art in London alongside other young artists such as Peter Blake and Allen Jones, and he experimented with different forms, including abstract expressionism. He did well as a student, and his paintings won prizes and were purchased for private collections.
Hockney’s early paintings incorporated his literary leanings, and he used fragments of poems and quotations from Walt Whitman in his work. This practice, and paintings such as We Two Boys Clinging Together, which he created in 1961, were the first nods to his homosexuality in his art.
Because he frequently went to the movies with his father as a child, Hockney once quipped that he was raised in both Bradford and Hollywood. He was drawn to the light and the heat of California, and first visited Los Angeles in 1963. He officially moved there in 1966. The swimming pools of L.A. were one of his favorite subjects, and he became known for large, iconic works such as A Bigger Splash. His expressionistic style evolved, and by the 1970s, he was considered more of a realist.
In addition to pools, Hockney painted the interiors and exteriors of California homes. In 1970, this led to the creation of his first “joiner,” an assemblage of Polaroid photos laid out in a grid. Although this medium would become one his claims to fame, he stumbled upon it by accident. While working on a painting of a Los Angeles living room, he took a series of photos for his own reference, and fixed them together so he could paint from the image. When he finished, however, he recognized the collage as an art form unto itself, and began to create more.
Hockney was an adept photographer, and he began working with photography more extensively. By the mid 1970s, he had all but abandoned painting in favor of projects involving photography, lithographs, and set and costume design for the ballet, opera and theater.
In the late 1980s, Hockney returned to painting, primarily painting seascapes, flowers and portraits of loved ones. He also began incorporating technology in his art, creating his first homemade prints on a photocopier in 1986. The marriage of art and technology became an ongoing fascination—he used laser fax machines and laser printers in 1990, and in 2009 he started using the Brushes app on iPhones and iPads to create paintings. A 2011 exhibit at the Royal Museum of Ontario showcased 100 of these paintings.
In a 2011 poll of more than 1,000 British artists, Hockney was voted the most influential British artist of all time. He continues to paint and exhibit, and advocates for funding for the arts.
source: http://www.biography.com/people/david...
Hockney attended the Bradford College of Art from 1953 to 1957. Then, because he was a conscientious objector to military service, he spent two years working in hospitals to fulfill his national service requirement. In 1959, he entered graduate school at the Royal College of Art in London alongside other young artists such as Peter Blake and Allen Jones, and he experimented with different forms, including abstract expressionism. He did well as a student, and his paintings won prizes and were purchased for private collections.
Hockney’s early paintings incorporated his literary leanings, and he used fragments of poems and quotations from Walt Whitman in his work. This practice, and paintings such as We Two Boys Clinging Together, which he created in 1961, were the first nods to his homosexuality in his art.
Because he frequently went to the movies with his father as a child, Hockney once quipped that he was raised in both Bradford and Hollywood. He was drawn to the light and the heat of California, and first visited Los Angeles in 1963. He officially moved there in 1966. The swimming pools of L.A. were one of his favorite subjects, and he became known for large, iconic works such as A Bigger Splash. His expressionistic style evolved, and by the 1970s, he was considered more of a realist.
In addition to pools, Hockney painted the interiors and exteriors of California homes. In 1970, this led to the creation of his first “joiner,” an assemblage of Polaroid photos laid out in a grid. Although this medium would become one his claims to fame, he stumbled upon it by accident. While working on a painting of a Los Angeles living room, he took a series of photos for his own reference, and fixed them together so he could paint from the image. When he finished, however, he recognized the collage as an art form unto itself, and began to create more.
Hockney was an adept photographer, and he began working with photography more extensively. By the mid 1970s, he had all but abandoned painting in favor of projects involving photography, lithographs, and set and costume design for the ballet, opera and theater.
In the late 1980s, Hockney returned to painting, primarily painting seascapes, flowers and portraits of loved ones. He also began incorporating technology in his art, creating his first homemade prints on a photocopier in 1986. The marriage of art and technology became an ongoing fascination—he used laser fax machines and laser printers in 1990, and in 2009 he started using the Brushes app on iPhones and iPads to create paintings. A 2011 exhibit at the Royal Museum of Ontario showcased 100 of these paintings.
In a 2011 poll of more than 1,000 British artists, Hockney was voted the most influential British artist of all time. He continues to paint and exhibit, and advocates for funding for the arts.
source: http://www.biography.com/people/david...
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
September 22, 2024
This was full of great quotes and gave me an idea of the artist's personality, which I never really knew much about. A couple of my favourites:
You wouldn't be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought. I am constantly preoccupied with how to remove distance so that we can all begin to sense we are the same, we are one.
It used to be you couldn't be gay. Now you can be gay but you can't smoke. There's always something.
It's good to rest and read.
https://sabrinasbooktails.blogspot.co...
You wouldn't be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought. I am constantly preoccupied with how to remove distance so that we can all begin to sense we are the same, we are one.
It used to be you couldn't be gay. Now you can be gay but you can't smoke. There's always something.
It's good to rest and read.
https://sabrinasbooktails.blogspot.co...
January 19, 2025
Sin ser un artista que yo conociera anteriormente (este libro fue un regalo); me impresionó sobremanera su espíritu y su energía. De una mente clara y abierta a las emociones, sabe lo que quiere y sabe lo que no. Sus pensamientos, aquí plasmados en frases cortas, me han sorprendido por estar llenos de vida, historia y filosofía. Siento, después de haber leído este libro, que conocí a Hocney, como si hubiese venido a tomar el té a mi casa.
January 18, 2025
A charming little book full of excellent thoughts and ideas. My fascination with David Hockney keeps growing. Maybe because I was born in Bradford, maybe because my brother was at school with him, definitely because I just love his work and the constant adoption of different techniques of making pictures.
June 20, 2025
pag.128 _______________________________
pag.132 _______________________________
___________________________________
WANT TO READ BOOK:
- Ravel e l'anima delle cose (Enzo Restagno)
La gente, a volte, non fa nemmeno caso alla primavera.
pag.132 _______________________________
Tanti chiamano erbacce questi fiori selvatici, ma è gente che, se si trovasse nel bel mezzo del giardino dell'Eden, non se ne accorgerebbe.
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WANT TO READ BOOK:
- Ravel e l'anima delle cose (Enzo Restagno)
October 30, 2024
Amazing for all lovers of David Hochney and his pithy sentences. It is a small volume with a few illustrations and many short paragraphs by Hockney. It would make a good present. It is best dipped in and out of - perhaps a page a day. I read it in two chunks which is not advisable.
July 21, 2024
A beautiful insight into the meaning of art from an icon.
November 3, 2024
Nice little book, but it's just quotes from Hockney. Feels like it would work better as one of those "quote-a-day" calendars.
January 9, 2025
love his art and love getting to know his attitude toward art and life
January 10, 2025
"If you don't have red, use blue"
- Picasso.
And other observations. A beautiful treasure of a book.
- Picasso.
And other observations. A beautiful treasure of a book.
May 1, 2025
I loved this little book. Like his paintings, his words are direct and joyous.
July 30, 2025
A booklet you can read over and over again. It helps you to look differently at looking.
August 10, 2024
Great little book full of Instagram friendly quotes.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews