Matignon, Paris
David Hockney
Moon Room
LelongApril 2020. David Hockney spends lockdown at his home in Normandy, in the Pays d'Auge region. In the middle of the night, he is awakened by an unusual light: through his window, he sees a magnificent full moon, larger and closer than usual. Without hesitation, he grabs his iPad and sketches what he sees from his window. It so happens that the artist has just read Maupassant's wonderful short story, "Clair de lune", which is set in the same landscape. That inspires Hockney to begin a series of works: painting every full moon throughout the year. The result is 15 night-time landscapes spanning from April 8th to December 5th, 2020. On the night of October 31st, Hockney produces five drawings, this time changing his viewpoint: he leaves his window and goes out into the garden. We can see the façade of the house with its lit up windows and the moon moving across the sky, from evening to morning. The last work in this series features Christmas decorations and an illuminated tree. This collection of iPad paintings is first shown at the Musee des Beaux-Arts in Rouen in 2024, then at the Fondation Louis Vuitton last year. Each work is printed on paper in the artist's studio and then mounted on aluminium. Fifteen copies are printed, numbered and signed.