“No theoretician, no writer on art, however interesting he or she might be, could be as interesting as Picasso. A good writer on art may give you an insight to Picasso, but, after all, Picasso was there first.” GivingFirstsMayArtMightInterestingMastersInsightGood Writers Book:Hockney on photography: conversations with Paul Joyce Source: Hockney on photography: conversations with Paul Joyce
“Once my hand has drawn something my eye has observed, I know it by heart, and I can draw it again without a model.” KnowsHeartI CanHandsEyeModelsDraws Author:David Hockney
“I usually only draw myself in down periods... I suppose that's why I often draw myself looking grim. I just think, 'Let's have a look in the mirror.' When you are alone and you look in a mirror you never put on a pleasing smile. Well, you don't, do you?” ThinkingWellsLooksPeriodsDrawsMirrorsGrim Author:David Hockney
“If you go too far with naturalism, there is no need to even organize; just look... and paint what you see until the canvas ends.” IfsNeedsLooksEndsNaturePaintCanvasOrganizeNaturalism Author:David Hockney
“It is difficult to say why I decided I wanted to be an artist. Obviously, I had some facility, more than other people, but sometimes facility comes because one is more interested in looking at things, examining them, more interested in the visual world than other people are.” PeopleWorldSometimesWantedArtistDifficultDecidedObservationVisualsFacilityExamining Book:David Hockney Source: David Hockney
“In art, new ways of seeing mean new ways of feeling; you can't divorce the two, as, we are now aware, you cannot have time without space and space without time.” WayMeanArtTwoFeelingsSpaceSeeingDivorceOriginalityNew Ways Author:David Hockney
“The pictures on the walls aren't like movies. They don't move, they don't talk, and they'll last longer. They will last longer.” LastsMovingPaintingWall Author:David Hockney
“Perspective is a law of optics... The Chinese did not have a system like it. Indeed, it is said they rejected the idea of the vanishing point in the eleventh century, because it meant the viewer was not there, indeed, had no movement, therefore was not alive.” SaidIdeasLawAliveCenturyMovementPerspectiveChineseRejectedViewersVanishingOpticsVanishing Point Author:David Hockney
“The vanishing point leads to the missiles of today, which can take us out of this world. It could be that the west's greatest mistakes were the 'invention' of the external vanishing point and the internal combustion engine.” WorldTodayMistakeThis WorldPerspectiveWestInventionInternalsEnginesMissilesVanishingCombustionVanishing Point Author:David Hockney
“With chemical film, it was possible to alter photographs, but you had to be an expert. That's not true any more. The LA Times fired a photographer at the beginning of the Iraq War for editing two shots together. Photography is crumbling. Certainly it is for the newspapers a bit now, isn't it? There will be painting again, absolutely!” TwoWarTogetherFilmBitsPaintingPhotographyShotsPhotographerPhotographIraqNewspapersExpertsChemicalsEditingIraq WarCrumbling Author:David Hockney