Celebrated British artist David Hockney dies aged 88

Summary

David Hockney has died at the age of 88, his publicist says
He passed away at home on Thursday, she says, "one month short of his 89th birthday"
The British artist is one of the most influential of the modern era and was one of the leaders of the 1960s pop art movement - see his life in pictures
In 2018, one of his swimming pool paintings, 'Portrait of an Artist', sold for nearly £70 million at auction - a record for a living artist
But Hockney was surprised at the public enthusiasm for his work - he had simply followed one rule: "Paint the things you love", writes the BBC's Sam Woodhouse
Tributes to the painter are coming in - he's remembered as a "giant" and "witty and sharp", our entertainment reporter writes

Live Reporting

Edited by Cachella Smith and Craig Hoyle

Hockney remembered as 'an absolute master' in France, where he had a homepublished at 12:27 BST
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney created a 91-metre-long landscape of Normandy
More tributes are coming in, including from France, where David Hockney spent a considerable amount of time.
Eric Ciotti, the mayor of Nice, writes on X that "the art world has lost an absolute master".
"Nice cherishes the memory of the exceptional bond he shared with Henri Matisse, his mentor."
Meanwhile, an X account for the Normandy Region, where Hockney lived for a while, describes him as a "source of inspiration".
Hockney painted the landscapes of his home in Normandy - a project completed during the Covid lockdown.
"His vision of our region will continue to enchant generations of visitors and admirers of his work," the post on X says.
Hockney gave us revolutionary depictions of gay domestic lifepublished at 12:21 BST
Josh Parry
LGBT and identity reporter
Hockney’s depictions of homosexual life were nothing short of revolutionary.
In an otherwise conservative era, he broke social taboos by celebrating gay relationships through his art.
He often depicted the quiet, everyday moments of gay domestic life at a time when such scenes were just not seen in the mainstream.
And what made it so revolutionary? He started doing it at a time when being gay was still criminalised in the UK.
In 1961, as a second-year student at the Royal College of Art, six years before homosexuality began to be decriminalised, he painted 'We Two Boys Together Clinging', named after a Walt Whitman poem.
He later went on to describe his early works as “propaganda of something I felt hadn't been propagandised as a subject: homosexuality.”
Dominic James Bilton, co-leader of the Queer British Art Network, told the BBC: “We’ve lost one of those people who were making changes in society before it was socially and culturally acceptable to be gay.
“He pioneered queer British art before it was fashionable to do so, before contemporary society built upon it.
“We’ve lost a giant of queer British art that subsequent generations have been inspired by and built upon and there’s not many people we can say that about.”

London mayor pays tribute to a 'true icon and revolutionary of British art'published at 12:09 BST
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
David Hockney attends the gala opening of 'Bigger & Closer' in London in February 2023
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan describes Hockney as a "true icon", and a "revolutionary of British art who never stopped reinventing his work".
In a post on X, Khan highlights Hockney's training at the Royal College of Art in London in the 1960s, and pays tribute to his "blockbuster London retrospectives".
The mayor describes how Hockey's "vivid paintings of our changing seasons" helped him to "see the beauty and fragility of our natural world".
"I know his legacy will live on for centuries to come," he adds.
Tate confirms it will go ahead with planned Hockney exhibitionspublished at 11:56 BST
Steven McIntosh
Entertainment reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney pictured with one of his paintings at the Tate Britain in 2008
More tributes are coming in from the art world for David Hockney, with Tate Britain director Alex Farquharson saying the institution is "greatly saddened" by his death.
"David was an endlessly inventive artist, with a unique vision of the world," Farquaharson says. "He was always completely and courageously himself, both in his work and in life.
"He taught us about the joy of looking, seeing things the rest of us failed to notice - his witty and sharp observations a constant presence within his work and in person."
He adds: "The loss to the art world is immense: David's passing brings to a close an extraordinary body of work characterised by reinvention. He touched so many, with his astonishing talent, his love for art and life, and his profound and unconventional insights."
Farquharson confirms the Tate will be "working closely with David's team to realise the two projects he was preparing for next year".
They include a major exhibition at the Tate Britain, and a multimedia installation at the Tate Modern's Turbine Hall.

'British art has lost a giant'published at 11:49 BST
Steven McIntosh
Entertainment reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney pictured in his living room in Los Angeles in 1991
Paying tribute on social media, broadcaster Piers Morgan remembered Hockney as a "wonderful character" and recalled seeing him in London recently.
"One of Britain’s greatest ever artists, a Yorkshireman to his bootstraps, my neighbour in Kensington (often saw him on local manoeuvres, albeit in a wheelchair more recently) and a wonderful character.
He added: "Loved his quote: ‘Laugh a lot, it clears the lungs.’"
Labour MP Chris Bryant said he was "very sad" to hear Hockney had died.
"The recent exhibition in Paris was one of the most memorable I’ve seen in many years," he added. "So innovative and inspiring.
"The way he renders shimmering water or night time scenes is amazing. And his line in portraits is perfect."
Art historian Richard Morris said Hockney's "huge achievement was to make serious painting look effortless".
"He carried forward one of the most sustained investigations into vision, space and representation by any post-war artist," Morris said.
"British art has lost a giant."
In Los Angeles, Hockney found a luxurious new way of lifepublished at 11:39 BST
Sam Woodhouse
BBC News
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney's 'A Bigger Splash' captures the moment an unseen diver creates chaos in paradise
In 1964, Hockney flew to Los Angeles - looking for the perfect light and bronzed torsos he'd seen in American male magazines.
Upon landing, he saw hundreds of swimming pools glittering in the valleys below him. They promised a carefree existence of affluence, leisure and sexual freedom.
Britain had only just abandoned rationing; in California, swimming pools weren't luxuries - just a way of life.
Hockney was entranced. He ditched his British oil paints in favour of bright, Californian acrylics but retained his Bradford accent - which the Americans adored.
The swimming pools themselves - with glorious weather and naked male bodies - became Hockney's most famous theme.
He had found his Paradise.
- David Hockney obituary: Bradford's artistic genius who painted the things he loved

Hockney was still creating new works aged 87published at 11:33 BST
Media caption,
David Hockney talks to Katie Razzall about his biggest-ever exhibition in Paris aged 87
After deciding to be an artist aged 11, Hockney became one of the most successful and influential artists of his generation, and was still creating new works at 87.
Happiest when making "joyful" art, and always innovating with his iPad, his works sold for millions.
Before his biggest-ever show opened in Paris last year, Hockney spoke to Katie Razzall about growing old, a recent visit from the King, and his two big loves - smoking and painting.
- Watch Katie Razzall's interview with David Hockney on iPlayer
Hockney became famous for his figurative and experimental workpublished at 11:32 BST
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
David Hockney poses with one of his paintings in Paris in 2017
David Hockney, known for his figurative work, economy of line, and exploration of light and space, is considered one of Britain's most influential contemporary artists.
Throughout a career spanning seven decades, Hockney experimented with painting, drawing, printmarking, watercolours and various other forms of art - including embracing technology by drawing on an iPad.
Hockney moved to Los Angeles in the 1960s, a move which inspired some of his most famous works, including swimming pool scenes such as 'A Bigger Splash'.
In 2018, his work 'Portrait of an Artist' sold for $90m (£70m) at auction, setting a then-record for a living artist.
His work has been presented in art institutions around the world, including the Musuem of Contemporary Art in Tokyo, Tate Britain in London, and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris.

Hockney's career was one full of honourspublished at 11:22 BST
Sam Woodhouse
BBC News
Image source, Getty Images
In a long career, David Hockney won every honour.
He turned down as many as he could.
In 1990, he refused a knighthood and was furious to discover he'd become a Companion of Honour.
The story goes that someone opened the letter and accepted on his behalf.
He did, however, accept the Order of Merit, the most prestigious award for high achievement. Believing it to be the personal gift of Queen Elizabeth II, Hockney felt it ungracious to decline.
But there was one tribute he did enjoy.
In 2007, a party was held at Tate Britain to celebrate Hockney's 70th birthday. After dinner, it was announced that the smoke alarms would be turned off for 10 minutes to allow Britain's Greatest Living Artist a cigarette.
It was the kind of honour plain 'Mr' Hockney did appreciate. And one which would not have been granted to anybody else.
Hockney in pictures: An influential career spanning decadespublished at 11:19 BST
From his contribution to the pop art movement in the 1960s, to painting a 91-metre work during the Covid pandemic, David Hockney was a majorly influential figure in the art world.
Here are some pictures from across the decades:
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney painting in his home studio in Los Angeles in 1966
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney pictured in front of his work, 'Santa Monica Boulevard', in 1980
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney's "Great Wall" of portraits in his Los Angeles studio - pictured here in 2001
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney in front of his painting 'A year in Normandie', a panoramic frieze painted during the Covid lockdown

Hockney was 'star student' at art school - but did things his own waypublished at 11:15 BST
Sam Woodhouse
BBC News
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Hockney, pictured at work in the 1960s, spent long hours in the studio and was often haunted by the feeling that he wasn't getting enough done
Hockney studied at the Royal College of Art in London - but very much did things his own way.
His classmate, the American artist RB Kitaj, told him to ignore everyone else and simply paint things he loved. "It was the best advice I ever had," he said.
What interested him was politics, literature and exploring his homosexuality. So one portrait showed himself in an act of love with the American poet, Walt Whitman.
Hockney was the college's star student but still gloriously pig-headed. David refused to write the one essay required to graduate, and so failed his finals.
The resulting outcry forced the Royal College to back down. It gave him his degree and even awarded him its prestigious Gold Medal.
- David Hockney: Bradford's artistic genius who painted the things he loved
Hockney leaves behind a long-term partner and two brotherspublished at 11:13 BST
David Hockney is survived by his partner Jean-Pierre Gonçalves de Lima.
He also leaves behind two brothers - Phillip and John - as well as a number of nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.
Hockney's publicist, Erica Bolton, specifically mentions his great-nephew Richard, who acted as his studio assistant towards the end of his life.

Hockney's early art was influenced by growing up in wartime Britainpublished at 11:10 BST
David Hockney was born on 9 July 1937.
His father, Kenneth, was a conscientious objector who detested social injustice, nuclear weapons and smoking in equal measure.
His mother, Laura, was the backbone of the family: strong-willed and devoutly Methodist.
David was one five children; during bombing raids, they hid under the stairs at their home in Bradford clutching bibles. In 1940, one explosion flattened the street.
The wartime shortage of paper restricted his early artistic efforts to drawing on the kitchen floor and hymn books in church.
Hockney's legacy reflects his 'enthusiasm for life' - publicistpublished at 11:08 BST
Image source, WPA Pool/Getty Images
We can now bring you some more from Hockney's publicist, who describes how his "enduring legacy reflects his underlying enthusiasm for life".
Erica Bolton notes some of the honours he received throughout his career, including being appointed by Queen Elizabeth II to the Order of the Companions of Honour in 1997 and to the Order of Merit in 2012.
She also mentions the periods of time he spent living in London and in Los Angeles - the scenes from which inspired a number of his works.
Bolton adds that Hockney is "considered one of the most influential and defining figures in contemporary art".

David Hockney: 'A genius in practically every medium'published at 11:01 BST
Sam Woodhouse
BBC News
Image source, Getty Images
David Hockney, who has died aged 88, was Britain's favourite artist - and a man of trenchant views, expressed in the broadest of Yorkshire vowels.
A genius in practically every medium, he worked with paint, photographs and iPads. He did etchings, lithographs, even stained glass windows - equally at home working with the grandeur of opera design and the intimacy of pen and ink.
A peroxide Bradford blond with round glasses and cheese-cutter hat, he set the art world alight in the 1960s, and packed out art galleries more than half a century later.
In 2018, one of his swimming pool paintings sold for nearly £70 million at auction - a record for a living artist. But Hockney was surprised at the public enthusiasm for his work.
He had simply followed one rule: "Paint the things you love".
- David Hockney obituary: Bradford's artistic genius who painted the things he loved
Hockney 'passed away peacefully at home' - publicistpublished at 10:56 BST
We can now share this statement from David Hockney's publicist, Erica Bolton:
"The celebrated British artist David Hockney, one of the most important figures in contemporary art in both the 20th and 21st centuries, passed away peacefully at home on 11 June 2026, one month short of his 89th birthday."

David Hockney dies age 88published at 10:47 BST
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Influential artist David Hockney has died at age 88, his publicist says.
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