Press Release

For London Gallery Weekend, Offer Waterman is delighted to announce their presentation of an exceptional selection of rare and early works by Britain’s greatest living artist, David Hockney.

David Hockney: Family and Friends is an exhibition of works on paper and photographic collages of Hockney’s inner circle spanning over three decades of artistic production: experimental works from his early career whilst still a student at the Royal College of Art in the 1960s, detailed line drawing portraits from the 1970s and photographic collages from the 1980s.

The selection includes Heaven Perpendicular (c.1960–1961), one of an important series of highly imaginative and personal compositions which demonstrates the young artist coming into his own, through the development of his unique pictorial language. Peter Crutch, Hockney’s unrequited crush and fellow student at the Royal College, who features in numerous works from this period, appears to be the subject of Hockney’s lust in this painting, his name referenced by way of a bold letter ‘P’ floating next to the figure’s head.

Fleeting, intimate moments are captured in Artist’s Father (1973). This superlative line drawing of Hockney’s father Kenneth, showcases both the artist’s technical deftness and the distinctive, easy charm he brought to the medium. In the deeply personal photographic collage, Mother, Los Angeles, December (1982), the artist’s mother Laura Thompson is presented seated in Hockney’s Hollywood Hills house, covered with a rainbow crocheted blanket in front of his prized possession Pablo Picasso’s, Artist and Model, 1965.

The gallery has established a significant international reputation for expertise in works by the artist, dealing in the best examples across all mediums, delivering the critically acclaimed historical exhibition David Hockney: Early Drawings in 2015 and more recently sponsoring David Hockney: The Arrival of Spring, Normandy, 2020 at The Royal Academy of Arts (23 May–26 September 2021).

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About the Artist

David Hockney (born 1937, Bradford) is a British painter, draughtsman, printmaker, photographer, and stage designer whose work has shaped the look and language of post‑war painting. His luminous California pool scenes, psychologically sharp double portraits, and expansive Yorkshire landscapes—anchored by works such as A Bigger Splash (1967) and Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) (1972)—have become touchstones for generations of painters.

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Also Exhibiting at Offer Waterman

About the Gallery
Offer Waterman opened his first gallery in Chelsea, London in 1996. Now based in a five-storey Georgian townhouse in Mayfair, the gallery has developed an international following for its exceptional 20th Century and Contemporary art. Previously the historic William Morris & Co showroom, the gallery at 17 St. George Street provides a relaxed and understated exhibition space across three floors, with a library and research centre on the fifth.

The gallery’s experienced and approachable team are dedicated to helping collectors, at all levels, develop remarkable and individual art collections. Offer Waterman is known for its historical exhibitions including, Frank Auerbach, Early Works (2012), David Hockney, Early Drawings (2015), Robert Rauschenberg: Transfer Drawings from the 1960s and 1970s (2016) and William Turnbull, Centenary Exhibition (2022). In 2023 we collaborated with fashion designer Jonathan Anderson on the exhibition On Foot, which placed 20th century British art in dialogue with Anderson’s own designs and works by contemporary artists and makers. Most recently, in the autumn of 2024, Frank Auerbach: Portraits of London, produced in collaboration with Francis Outred, presented 25 major landscapes from private and museum collections and attracted more than 5,000 visitors.

Offer Waterman is an established benefactor of museums and arts organisations and the gallery has supported numerous museum exhibitions including the Tate’s most recent David Hockney retrospective (2017); the Royal Academy of Arts exhibitions Lucian Freud: The Self-portraits (2019) and David Hockney: The Arrival of Spring, Normandy, (2020) and Barbara Hepworth: Art and Life at the Hepworth Wakefield (2021-22). In 2023, the gallery sponsored exhibitions by two leading female artists - the beautifully curated Lucie Rie: The Adventure of Pottery at Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge and the equally compelling Gwen John: Art and Life in Paris and London at Pallant House Gallery, Chichester.
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Address
17 St George Street
London
United Kingdom
Opening Hours
Tuesday – Friday, 11am–5pm
Saturday 11am–4pm

The show will be closed for the holidays on Good Friday and Easter Saturday.
(1)
London 17 St George Street
Offer Waterman
17 St George Street, London, United Kingdom
+44 (0)20 7042 3233
https://www.waterman.co.uk/

Opening hours
Tuesday – Friday, 11am–5pm
Saturday 11am–4pm

The show will be closed for the holidays on Good Friday and Easter Saturday.
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