Everything
“They are just using Van Gogh and Monet, and they’re dead. They can’t add anything to it…well, I’m still alive, so I can make things work better.”
These are the joking words of legendary artist David Hockney, who describes his input in an all-new immersive art exhibition which will open in London early next year.
The 85-year old painter, who is known for his contribution to the pop art movement of the ’60s and widely celebrated as one of the most influential British artists of the 20th century, will have an active part in shaping the narrative of his upcoming project, David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away).
We are thrilled to announce our first show, David Hockney: Bigger & Closer. Using large-scale projection in an extraordinary new space, Hockney takes us on a personal journey through his art, featuring iconic paintings alongside some rarely seen pieces & some newly created work pic.twitter.com/78iiSGcksS
— Lightroom (@_LightRoomLDN) November 16, 2022
“The world is very, very beautiful if you look at it, but most people don’t look very much,” said Hockney via an excerpt with Lightroom. “They scan the ground in front of them so they can walk, they don’t really look at things incredibly well, with an intensity. I do.”
The immersive exhibition will be held at the new London Arts Venue Lightroom in Kings Cross, where visitors will journey on an immersive trip down memory lane, revisiting some of Hockney’s most iconic paintings. Using large-scale projection in the new art space, it will feel as if you are living through Hockney’s artistic lens as you experience sixty years of his art.
Further to the experience, Hockney himself will narrate the six chapters of the exhibition, as he guides the audience through 50 minutes of wall-to-wall monitors projecting an ethereal display of colours with a specially composed score by Nico Muhly. The exhibition will also offer a look into the artist’s life-long fascination with the possibilities of new media.
You can listen to Hockney talk about his upcoming show via this interview on BBC Radio. If you’re a Londoner or perhaps visiting the UK over the holiday season, you can now purchase tickets for the exhibition via the Lightroom website.
