David Hockney's Influence On Photography

Itzel Guedea

February 12, 2017

MART B145

Hockney’s Influence

David Hockney has greatly contributed to the art world through his unique artistic vision. Although he is known for his strong opinions about photography, he transformed a medium he dismissed as limited. Hockney viewed photography purely as a mechanical copy. He saw the medium as not being able to express anything beyond what was photographed. Photography in Hockney’s opinion could not lead the viewer to a new form of thought as compared to a medium like painting. His criticism of the medium did not discourage him from finding different uses for photography. His accidental creation of the joiner technique created moving images. Instead of taking one shot, he would take consecutive

Not only is he an innovative artist he has an analytical nature that led him to question artistic processes from history. His theories about the use of technology in aiding realistic painting give a different perspective of art history. Artists have always had strong opinions about the use of technology in aiding their artwork. Some do not see the art created as a pure expression of talent. If Hockney’s theories are correct they prove that technology has always been used. The masters revered by modern artists used whatever tools necessary to aid them in creating their masterpieces. This revelation is not a comfortable one for artists. Hockney feels that artists should learn from the lessons of the past. Artists should not limit themselves by using the advanced technology at their disposal. Like the old masters, artists should push the boundaries of what technology can help accomplish. Artists can write new narratives, challenge artistic conventions like the artists of the

Unlike Hockney’s joiner portraits I did not collage various angles of his portrait together. I placed a collage of his figure rotating at the center of the room to show the passage of time. He took his time facing each angle of the room. A photoshop filter was added to his figures, something that Hockney never used. To keep the space grounded I added the lone figure photographing the professors. I did not add filters to her to keep her apart from the finished narrative. I feel that the piece tells the story of what we did that day in class. The unchanged student is taking pictures of the classroom that would later be changed dramatically using technology. Hockney is an important artistic figure to study. His legacy is one of innovation. He sought to show the truth of his subjects. While he did not appreciate what photography could do as an artistic medium he used it and came up with something new. We learn the important lesson that one should not dismiss a medium but to learn from it. Our class used his ideas about technology and his joiners as inspiration for our projects. My finished piece is very different from his joiners but one can see his influence in the collaged photos and intentions behind the