Hockney and Piero: A Longer Look – an 'absorbing' exhibition
The National Gallery's intimate show features 'whimsical triptych' by the two artists
The National Gallery's new show, "Hockney and Piero: A Longer Look", comprises just three paintings: Piero della Francesca's Renaissance masterpiece "The Baptism of Christ" flanked by two of David Hockney's colourful works.
The idea, said Eddy Frankel in Time Out, is that you slow right down and "take the time to consider, think about, absorb and really, genuinely look at the art". Hockney was "besotted" with Piero's painting and spent countless hours studying and obsessing over it.
He is far from Piero's only modern admirer, said Jonathan Jones in The Guardian. Over the years, "poets, novelists and feminist thinkers have been spellbound by him". Now, this "intimate" show shines a light on Hockney's "fascination" with the celebrated painting.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Spot-lit" against "royal blue walls", "The Baptism" is the centrepiece of a "whimsical triptych", said Alastair Sooke in The Telegraph. What is it about the painting that Hockney found so compelling? The catalogue reveals he was enthralled by the "clarity" of Piero's composition – a quality reflected within his own "luminous" works displayed on either side.
Painted in 1977, "My Parents" depicts Hockney's "serene" mother and "twitchy" father. Between them is a green cabinet topped with a vase of brightly coloured tulips and a mirror reflecting a postcard of Piero's painting. The other piece, from the same year, "Looking at Pictures on a Screen", shows Hockney's friend, the curator Henry Geldzahler, examining the posters of four paintings from the National Gallery (including "The Baptism") taped to a folding screen.
"Everyone is seeing, looking, analysing", said Time Out, and images are "twisted, substituted and copied". The painting of his parents is "70s Hockney at his best", while the other work is slightly less successful yet still "clever".
Despite London needing another Hockney exhibition "about as much as it needs another Pret", the trio of paintings are "dizzyingly layered" and "before you know it" you've been gazing at the works for half an hour "trying to untangle it all", and "Hockney's work is done".
"The more you look" at the paintings, "the more you see," added Laura Freeman in The Times. This "absorbing, puzzle-box show" is "less a case of spot the difference, more spot-the-artist's-mind-at-work".
"What is deliberate, what is unconscious – and what is the slightly fanciful imagining of a spectator getting carried away in the game?"
Hockney and Piero: A Longer Look is at the National Gallery, London, from 8 August to 27 October
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Irenie Forshaw is a features writer at The Week, covering arts, culture and travel. She began her career in journalism at Leeds University, where she wrote for the student newspaper, The Gryphon, before working at The Guardian and The New Statesman Group. Irenie then became a senior writer at Elite Traveler, where she oversaw The Experts column.
-
8 touring theater productions to mark on your calendar this fall
The Week Recommends A pop icon, Shakespeare reconsidered and a sublime musical about mortality are all on the boards
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - September 8, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - circuitous thoughts, overheating circuits, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Chicken with Steph's spice
The Week Recommends This Caribbean-inspired recipe is mouthwateringly delicious
By The Week UK Published
-
8 touring theater productions to mark on your calendar this fall
The Week Recommends A pop icon, Shakespeare reconsidered and a sublime musical about mortality are all on the boards
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Chicken with Steph's spice
The Week Recommends This Caribbean-inspired recipe is mouthwateringly delicious
By The Week UK Published
-
A peaceful seaside village in Turkey
The Week Recommends Çıralı has been spared the 'scourge' of all-inclusive resort development
By The Week UK Published
-
Slow Horses, series four: 'swaggering' spy thriller returns
The Week Recommends Gary Oldman is 'impeccable' in one of the 'most consistent' shows on TV
By Ellie O'Mahoney, The Week UK Published
-
Peter Kennard: Archive of Dissent – 'striking' political photomontages
The Week Recommends Whitechapel Gallery retrospective showcases half-a-century of the British artist's 'powerful' political works
By The Week UK Published
-
Jay Rayner shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The journalist and food critic picks works by Nora Ephron, Fliss Freeborn and more
By The Week UK Published
-
TV to watch in September, from 'Agatha All Along' to 'The Penguin'
The Week Recommends A 'WandaVision' spinoff, a DC Comics villain's starring turn and a silly Netflix original
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
The Marriage of Figaro: 'lively' revival of Mozart's comedy 'zings along'
The Week Recommends David McVicar's 'ever-fresh' production is back at the Royal Opera House
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published