A History of Pictures

A picture, says David Hockney, is the only way that we can communicate what we see. Here, in a collaboration with art critic Martin Gayford, he explores the many ways that artists have pictured the world, sharing sparkling insights and ideas that will delight every art lover and art maker. Readers who thrilled to Hockney’s Secret Knowledge know that he has an uncanny ability to get into the minds of artists. In A History of Pictures he covers far more ground, getting at the roots of visual expression and technique through hundreds of images from cave paintings to frames from movies that are reproduced. It’s a joyful celebration of one of humanity’s oldest impulses.

About the Author

David Hockney is one of the world’s most popular painters and the author of the bestselling Secret Knowledge:Rediscovering the Lost Techniques of the Old Masters (2001). He lives in Los Angeles.

Martin Gayford’s many books include Man with a Blue Scarf: On Sitting for a PortraitbyLucian Freud (2013) and Rendez-vous with Art, with Philippe de Montebello (2014). He lives in Cambridge, England.