8
David Hockney
Illustrations for Fourteen Poems by C.P. Cavafy
- Estimate
- £12,000 - 18,000♠
£27,500
Lot Details
The complete set of 13 etchings with aquatint, on handmade vellum wove paper, hors texte, with title page and justification,
1966/67
66 x 52.7 x 4.6 cm (25 7/8 x 20 3/4 x 1 3/4 in.)
edition E, each plate signed, dated '66' and annotated 'AP' in pencil (one of 5 artist's proofs, aside from the edition of 25), published by Editions Alecto, London, all sheets, loose (as issued), each within a separate folder containing the respective poem, all generally in very good condition, contained within the original black leather portfolio box.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
Titles include: Portrait of Cavafy in Alexandria (Pl. 1); Two Boys Aged 23 or 24 (Pl. 2); He Enquired after the Quality (Pl. 3); To Remain (Pl. 4); According to Prescriptions of Ancient Magicians (Pl. 5); In an Old Book (Pl. 6); The Shop Window of a Tobacco Store (Pl. 7); In the Dull Village (Pl. 8); The Beginning (Pl. 9); One Night (Pl. 10); In Despair (Pl. 11); Beautiful and White Flowers (Pl. 12) and Portrait of Cavafy II (Pl. 13).
"I think I did 12 . . . 12 etchings. Some were drawn from life, some were drawn from my drawings, some were drawn from photographs. I was rather proud of it at the time, and yeah, I would have thought of it as good propaganda, I would. And [it] probably helped a little bit. And I would always defend my life as it were - what I was up to. I wasn't speaking for anybody else, but I would certainly defend my way of living, yes. I've never really been an activist, only in my work - that's my job, to do my work, not to spend it doing anything else. But if I played a little part in it, I'm proud. I might have done, I think . . . made people open their lives a little bit, perhaps. I'd like to think that.”
David Hockney, quoted in Neil MacGregor’s discussion of In the Dull Village, chosen to be included in The British Museum’s A History of the World in 100 Objects
"I think I did 12 . . . 12 etchings. Some were drawn from life, some were drawn from my drawings, some were drawn from photographs. I was rather proud of it at the time, and yeah, I would have thought of it as good propaganda, I would. And [it] probably helped a little bit. And I would always defend my life as it were - what I was up to. I wasn't speaking for anybody else, but I would certainly defend my way of living, yes. I've never really been an activist, only in my work - that's my job, to do my work, not to spend it doing anything else. But if I played a little part in it, I'm proud. I might have done, I think . . . made people open their lives a little bit, perhaps. I'd like to think that.”
David Hockney, quoted in Neil MacGregor’s discussion of In the Dull Village, chosen to be included in The British Museum’s A History of the World in 100 Objects
Literature
David Hockney
BritishDavid Hockney (b. 1937) is one of the most well-known and celebrated artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. He works across many mediums, including painting, collage, and more recently digitally, by creating print series on iPads. His works show semi-abstract representations of domestic life, human relationships, floral, fauna, and thechanging of seasons.
Hockney has exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, among many other institutions. On the secondary market, his work has sold for more than $90 million.
Browse ArtistHockney has exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, among many other institutions. On the secondary market, his work has sold for more than $90 million.