Liz Nicholls invites you to dive into almost 60 years of David Hockney’s extraordinary creative life with this beautiful updated book, with one copy to be won…
David Hockney had a gift for making us look at familiar things differently.
A swimming pool. A Yorkshire lane. A vase of flowers. A friend sitting in a chair. Even a view through a window. Under Hockney’s eye, everyday life became something to stop and really see.
Born in Bradford in 1937, Hockney studied at Bradford School of Art before heading to the Royal College of Art in London. He quickly established himself as one of the most exciting young British artists of his generation, becoming associated with the Pop Art movement while developing a style that was entirely his own.
He was famously curious, refusing to let one medium or artistic convention define him. Painting was at the heart of his career, but he also worked extensively in drawing, printmaking, photography and stage design.
Then there was California. Hockney first visited Los Angeles in the early 1960s and was captivated by its light, space and colour. The experience had a profound effect on his work, inspiring the sun-drenched swimming pools and spare, vivid architecture that became among his most recognisable images.
But California was only one chapter. Hockney repeatedly returned to Yorkshire, creating enormous landscapes that transformed the countryside of his childhood into something almost theatrical. His work became a continuing investigation into perspective, movement, time and the very act of seeing.
He was equally fascinated by technology. Over the years, Hockney experimented with Polaroids, photocopiers, fax machines and digital tools, eventually embracing the iPad as another way to draw and paint. Even in his later years, he retained that sense of curiosity and playfulness that had characterised his work from the beginning.
Hockney died in London on 11 June, aged 88, leaving behind an extraordinary body of work and a legacy that reaches far beyond the traditional art world. His death prompted tributes to an artist whose influence stretched across generations and whose work had become woven into popular culture.
And perhaps that is what makes his pictures so enduring. They don’t simply show us places or people; they encourage us to reconsider how we see them.
Now, you can explore that remarkable career from the comfort of your own sofa.
Hockney’s Pictures, published by Thames & Hudson, charts almost 60 years of extraordinary creativity. The fully updated edition brings together paintings, drawings, watercolours, prints and photography, alongside a new final chapter exploring Hockney’s later work across different media, including his iPad creations.
At 496 pages, with 90 colour and 30 black-and-white illustrations, it is both a substantial retrospective and a beautiful celebration of an artist whose work was, above all, about the joy of looking.
We have one copy of Hockney’s Pictures, worth £35, to give away.
For your chance to own this beautiful tribute to the life and work of David Hockney, enter….
How to enter
To enter our prize draw, fill in the form below before 12pm on Friday 9 October 2026.
Where to find more prizes?
Head to our competitions page to find all of our current prizes.
