Having seen every Hockney UK exhibition for the past two decades, he rarely disappoints, usually quite the opposite as he has continued to explore new artistic techniques, e.g. his forthcoming immersive exhibition at the “Lightroom” in January 2023 promises to be another breakthrough using image projection in a new way. The book has been on my “must buy” list for a little while.
As reviews state, his thesis creates a new way to look at art, just as, according to Hockney, many of the old masters looked differently at their subjects using mirrors and lenses allowing them to create works radically different from their previous work and the work of contemporaries not using optics. He identifies the first use of optics in Flanders in 1430 and develops his thesis from there. As an artist, creator and paintbrush user, Hockney is able to look at works of art differently, to see what most cannot, to observe and point out what most are unable to do or see. This makes him a great guide through this approach to art history (even if, on occasions, he does not explain his point fully for the non-artist).
Perhaps to refute accusations of cheating, at various points in the book, he is at pains to remind readers that “optics do not make marks, they only produce an image, a look, a means of measurement. The artist is still responsible for the conception and it requires great skill...” (P. 131)
The high quality, large format book is lavishly illustrated with a huge range of paintings to explore and support his theory. To create the full historical picture, he states that he filled his long studio walls with hundreds of time-lined paintings to clarify the development of painting - its subject, materials, eras - together with the development of optics and their use in the wider world while noting also their availability to artists. This wall is reproduced on two double pages early in the book and, if it were necessary, it reinforces the Hockney’s meticulous research and his approach to all his work.
“There are many unanswered questions, and this book can be no more than an introduction to this vast subject.” (Page 183)
Although it did for me what Martin Kemp wrote on the cover, made me look at art differently, there are a few disappointments. I have been a follower, admirer and wonderer standing before Canalettos for decades. I cannot visit the National Gallery without seeing the Canalettos and will travel (reasonable) distances to see exhibitions. He seemed a likely contender for optics and Hockney’s research but no, mentioned only on six widely separated pages. That, however, is a personal disappointment and should not put off readers from Hockney’s wider view.
Another personal disappointment is that there are not enough illustrations showing how the optical techniques work. Apart from the picture on page two hundred showing him working on his DIY easel, mirror, lense and cloth, there are only verbal descriptions (and the front cover). I would have liked more but, as I said, a personal point.
Using the DIY devise on page two hundred, Hockney points out he was unsurprised to discover its success was largely dependent on light - the better the light, the stronger the image, a good point to finish the review.
Hockney lets light into a subject few have considered and emphasises that only artists’ hands create works of art, light and shadow (not optics).
Easy to read from cover to cover to be re-visited many times later, I recommend it highly.
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