David Hockney (9 July 1937 – 11 June 2026) was an English painter, stage designer and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. He was known for his vivid, stylised realism and championed figurative work, often in a bold style, during a period when abstract art predominated.[2][3][4]
Hockney studied at the Royal College of Art before moving to Los Angeles in the 1960s. The light and lifestyle of California had a profound effect on his work; using acrylic paint he worked on large portrait studies before turning to prints and photocollages in his later career. He used digital applications extensively in the final decades of his career and returned to the Yorkshire landscapes of his childhood with large en plein air pieces. He was also a celebrated operatic stage designer. He exhibited internationally with several important retrospectives at leading institutions and was the recipient of major civic and institutional honours. Hockney came out as gay as a young man several years before the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Britain. He lived between the United Kingdom, France and the United States. In the late 2010s, auction sales established him as the most expensive living artist.
Hockney died at his home in London on 11 June 2026, aged 88.[129][130]
King Charles III paid tribute to Hockney, describing him as “a giant of the world of art and painting, a Yorkshireman through and through, and a dear friend and inspiration to so many”.[131] The artist Tracey Emin said “A great artist and a wonderful man, who with the power of art changed the perception of Britishness. A proud chain-smoking homosexual, who flew the flag higher than any other British artist.”[131] Prime Minister Keir Starmer also paid tribute, with a spokesman saying: “The prime minister is saddened to hear of the death of David Hockney, one of Britain’s most celebrated artists.”[132]
A Bigger Picture at the Royal Academy in London, January 2012
