Description:
[§]
DAVID
HOCKNEY
O.M.,
C.H.,
R.A.
(BRITISH
B.1937)







PAPER
POOLS







Signed
and
dated
'80
and
numbered
524/1000
in
pencil,
published
by
Tyler
Graphics,
Ltd.,
Mount
Kisco,
New
York,
bears
blindstamp,
on
Arches
Cover
paper,
lithograph;
Together
with
'Paper
Pools',
the
accompanying
book,
signed
by
the
artist
in
red
ink
and
stamp
numbered
524
on
the
justification,
with
blue
canvas
covers
and
original
slipcase







27cm
x
23cm
(9in
x
10.25in)



















































Notes:
Note:






Think
of
David
Hockney,
and
immediately
picture
the
sunshine-soaked,
boldly-hued
scenes
of
California
homes
and
swimming
pools
that
he
is
widely
known
for.
After
formative
years
spent
in
comparatively
dreary
Yorkshire,
Hockney
was
immediately
captivated
by
the
bold
colours
and
widespread
luxury
of
Los
Angeles.
Private
swimming
pools
were
an
extravagance
in
the
U.K.,
but
in
the
City
of
Angels,
Hockney
found
them
everywhere:
he
had
discovered
a
subject.


Paper
Pools






is
a
book
chronicling
a
very
specific
moment
in
Hockney''s
creative
process,
a
short
period
in
1978
when
on
route
to
California
from
England,
he
made
a
de-tour
to
Tyler
Graphics
studios
in
upstate
New
York,
to
visit
friend
and
previous
collaborator
Kenneth
Tyler.
Here
he
was
introduced
to
a
new
medium,
the
paper
pulp
process.
This
involved
dyeing
wet
pulped
rags,
which
were
applied
in
various
ways
to
recently-created
and
still
wet
paper,
until
they
were
finally
fully
pressed
and
dried;
there
were
opportunities
for
the
artist
to
manipulate
the
application
of
colour
at
all
stages.
The
result
was
a
cross
between
paper-making,
print-making
and
painting.
Hockney
found
learning
this
new
technique
and
its
specific
restrictions,
creatively
freeing.
He
realised
the
process
could
be
very
conducive
to
variations
on
a
theme,
and
the
swimming
pool
and
the
effects
of
different
lights
and
movements
on
the
water
was
captivating
him
once
again
-
as
he
swam
in
and
looked
at
Tyler''s
outdoor
pool
each
day.


In
the
resulting
series,
Paper
Pools,
Hockney
creatively
addresses
a
formal,
and
paradoxical
problem:
how
to
depict
the
elusive,
ever-changing
qualities
of
a
body
of
water,
in
a
flat,
stationary,
two-dimensional
form.
There
is
something
conceptually
satisfying
in
such
a
water-heavy
process
being
used
to
attempt
this.
In
these
works,
colour
does
not
sit,
it
is
fused,
completely
integrated
into
the
medium.
Water
is
the
same;
light
and
movement
are
subsumed
into
it,
and
thus
its
appearance
and
qualities
change.


The
beautiful
book
fully
illustrates
this
process,
with
a
reflective
text
written
by
Hockney
and
accompanied
by
various
illustrations
-
reference
polariods
he
took
of
the
swimming
pool
in
different
lights,
line
drawings
capturing
the
physical
process,
reproductions
of
each
work
in
the
series
as
well
as
some
in-process
photographs;
of
the
works
still
at
the
wet
pulp
stage
before
they
were
pressed.
There
is
a
vivid
sense
of
the
finished
product,
but
also
of
the
process
that
went
into
it:
physical
effort,
litres
of
water,
eclectic
equipment,
artistic
imagination
and
a
strong
feeling
of
camaraderie.


To
celebrate
the
publication
of
the
work,
Hockney
produced
a
six-colour,
hand-drawn
lithograph,
which
he
signed
and
numbered.
It
revives
his
favoured
subject,
boldly
depicting
the
swimming
pool
and
diving
board
in
strong
colours.
The
gently
rippling
water
is
depicted
with
surface
watery,
wavy
marks,
overlaying
the
deeper,
overlapping
shadows
-
there
is
depth
and
movement,
as
Hockney
manipulates
different
effects
of
lithographic
mark-making.


Paper
Pools
is
a
celebration
of
the
artistic
innovation
and
imagination
of
a
very
particular
moment
in
Hockney''s
career,
but
also
an
encapsulation
of
some
of
the
key
themes
and
subjects
of
his
wider
oeuvre.