When David Hockney's bright and bright paintings meet the classical masters of the Renaissance, who will be better. In the Fitzwilliam Museum of Cambridge University, the exhibition "Hockney's Eye: The Art and Technology of Painting" launched a dialogue spanning more than 500 years, and tried to explore Hockney's ideas and theories on perspective, Camera lucida and other technologies. In the view of Guardian commentator Jonathan Jones, Hockney's paintings overshadow those classical masters, and exhibitions are like a book he writes, revealing new ways of viewing art.
As far as I know, David Hockney has never applied for a patent for a certain color. But we would say 'Hockney Blue' and 'Hockney Red', in fact, Hockney has his own set of bright and subtle color palettes. This is particularly evident in the Fitzwilliam Museum under his occupation. This museum has one of the best collections of classical master paintings in the UK. These classical masters are on par with each other. Next to Domenico Venezian's "Annunciation" written in the 15th century, a Hockney version of the Virgin is hanging. Angels are cheering to her. Her body is full of strong, almost psychedelic colors. On the Emerald lawn, dark pink and blue shadows complement each other, and the yellow floor is covered with radioactive terra cotta lines.
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Annunciation, Domenico Veneziano
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Annunciation II, After Fra Angelico, David Hockney
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Imitation of Hoberma, David Hockney 2017
This exhibition is like Hockney's carefully illustrated, concise, and inspiring book. You don't have to agree with his theories to discover that they have opened up your way of viewing art. One exhibition hall shows his claim in the book Secret Knowledge, that the extraordinarily accurate portraits created by Angel in the 19th century were made with Camera lucida. We will see real cases of optical technology innovation under this industrial revolution, Anger's own paintings, and Hockney's own Camera lucida paintings of Damien Hirst, Ian McKellen and Alan Bennett. Hockney's paintings are full of wit and vitality.
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Hockney's recent Self-portrait
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Annunciation, Domenico Veneziano
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Annunciation II, After Fra Angelico, David Hockney
The Renaissance lost. But Hockney would never say such things. He competed with artists 500 years ago in a friendly way, as if he had attended the Royal College of Art with Veneziano, rather than the generation of Allen Jones and RB Kitaj. What was Hockney thinking when he painted his Renaissance "The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary" in 2017? He conducted experiments on perspective theory, and the exhibition highlighted Hockney's experiment by analyzing Veneziano's violation of single point perspective through computer analysis. Therefore, while drawing inspiration from Hockney's passionate colors, the exhibition guides you to contemplate Western art's exploration of how to depict the world with realistic depth.
However, Hockney does not think this is a good idea. He believes that perspective is a limited way of observation. The exhibition was held in Fitzwilliam Museum of Cambridge University and Heong Gallery in Downing College, of which Heong Gallery is the main venue. There was a film produced by Hockney, with the theme of his favorite Chinese scroll. The scroll unfolded, showcasing an emperor's epic view of the Grand Canal and the world around him. How does art reproduce that magnificent scene? Hockney did a great job. Next to the Landscape painting by Meindert Hobbema, a landscape painter in the Dutch Golden Age of the Netherlands, Hockney presented what he called "anti perspective" on six canvases. The road unfolded between two rows of tall trees. The space in the distance did not shrink, but extended outward. Those colors: fiery red farmhouses, Emerald farmland. In this charming scene, you can see art history more clearly.
![](/uploads/230615/1-2306151542322c.jpg)
Imitation of Hoberma, David Hockney 2017
This exhibition is like Hockney's carefully illustrated, concise, and inspiring book. You don't have to agree with his theories to discover that they have opened up your way of viewing art. One exhibition hall shows his claim in the book Secret Knowledge, that the extraordinarily accurate portraits created by Angel in the 19th century were made with Camera lucida. We will see real cases of optical technology innovation under this industrial revolution, Anger's own paintings, and Hockney's own Camera lucida paintings of Damien Hirst, Ian McKellen and Alan Bennett. Hockney's paintings are full of wit and vitality.
![](/uploads/230615/1-230615154326327.jpg)
Hockney's recent Self-portrait
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12 Portraits Imitating Angel (Part), 1999-2000, David Hockney
Sometimes, all of this may seem unfair. Hockney's bright colors will overshadow those classical masters. Beside a Yorkshire Landscape painting by Hockney, the view of Hampstead in Constable looks like a wet handkerchief. It should be reiterated that this was not intentional. In a room filled with paintings of Dutch flowers, the dialogue between the past and present has been perfectly arranged. On the screen in the center of the exhibition hall, Hockney's flower animation using his iPad was playing, with flowers growing and falling one after another. You can see fragility and variability in the blooming flowers depicted by Hockney, and then go up close to see those Dutch paintings, where insects and snails curl up on bright tulips.
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April 17, 2020, iPad painting, David Hockney
Despite exuding a craftsman like humility and disrespect for the artists' "secret knowledge," the exhibition will ultimately make you pay homage to Hockney. You start to wonder if he is a living 'classical master'. Not everything flows into humorous views on perspective and machines. Between a collection of masterpieces in the museum, hangs Hockney's 1970 painting of 'Le Parc des Sources, Vichy'. Two people sat side by side with their backs facing us. Long wavy curls draped around their collars, exuding a touching sense of the times.
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Le Parc des Sources, Vichy, David Hockney
They were in a neatly trimmed park, overlooking a boulevard that gradually narrowed and extended into gaps in the sky. On this three meter wide oil painting, the trees are pure colored walls. One side is blue, and the other side is more stone gray, which matches human clothing. Under the tree is a large shade. These strong and tempting colors surround you, immersing you in them. I returned repeatedly to enjoy the feeling of being immersed in the atmosphere. This is a painting as an art film.
You can imagine various stories, speculate on the identities of two people, and their calm and intense contemplation in the face of profound scenery. This may be a love tryst, or it may be a whisper about a mutual friend. What about the third empty chair next to them? A photo in the catalog shows that Hockney himself is the owner of that seat. The two friends in the photo are fashion designer Ossie Clark and sculptor Mo McDermott. But these facts will not exhaust the mystery of this painting, nor will they exhaust its romance and grandeur. This is his favorite big picture. As big as life.
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Grand Canyon I, 2017, David Hockney
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Grand Canyon I, 2017, David Hockney
Finally, I don't believe that all this can be done with Optical instrument. All great artists have their own secrets. David Hockney has undoubtedly always been like that.
The exhibition "Hockney's Eye: The Art and Technology of Painting" will continue until August 29, 2022.