"David Hockney: A Bigger Picture" was an ambitious exhibition showcasing David Hockney's exploration of landscapes over a 50-year period. Held at the Royal Academy of Arts, it marked a significant moment in Hockney's career, emphasizing his fascination with the depiction of landscapes. The exhibition, which later moved to the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, included a wide range of media, from traditional paintings and drawings to modern iPad drawings and multi-camera films. These pieces, especially created for the exhibition, were inspired by the East Yorkshire landscape and demonstrated Hockney's revolutionary approach to capturing the essence of the natural world (Royal Academy of Arts).
The exhibition was not just a retrospective but a highlight of Hockney's recent works focused on his native Yorkshire, after spending a long period in California. It featured over 296,000 visitors at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao alone and was celebrated for its fresh take on landscape art. The show included oil paintings, collages, digital videos, and iPad paintings, with a significant emphasis on the natural changes throughout the year, particularly noted in works like "Spring’s Arrival in Wold Gate," composed of 32 canvases (Wikipedia).
A review of the exhibition highlighted Hockney's deep love for observing the world and the intense pleasure he derives from visual experiences. This love translated into a vast exhibition that placed Hockney within the tradition of great British landscape artists such as Constable and Turner. The exhibition featured around 150 works, illustrating Hockney's repeated exploration of motifs like Thixendale Trees through different seasons and showcasing his journey from painting largely from memory to detailed observations captured through various media (Anna McNay).
Hockney's embrace of modern technology, such as iPad drawings, alongside traditional oil paintings and sketches, underscores his versatility and innovative spirit. The exhibition "A Bigger Picture" not only celebrated Hockney's contributions to landscape painting but also invited viewers to experience the sublime beauty of the British countryside and the changing seasons, all through the eyes of one of the most influential living artists (Anna McNay).