This summer, the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris offers an extraordinary artistic experience: a sweeping retrospective of David Hockney, one of the most influential and beloved artists of our time. On view until August 31, 2025, the exhibition features over 400 works spanning seven decades of Hockney’s creative journey.

The exhibition is unprecedented in scale, spanning all eleven galleries of the Fondation, and equally ambitious in scope. It gathers pieces from international institutions, private collections, and Hockney’s studio and Foundation. Paintings in oil and acrylic, ink, pencil, and charcoal drawings, digital works created on iPhone and iPad, photographic compositions, and immersive video installations offer an expansive portrait of an artist who has consistently embraced both tradition and innovation.

Hockney himself has been closely involved in the exhibition’s creation. Together with his partner and studio manager Jean-Pierre Gonçalves de Lima and longtime assistant Jonathan Wilkinson, he shaped the narrative of the show.

The journey begins underground — with a selection of key works from the 1950s to the 1970s: Portrait of My Father (1955), the swimming pool paintings (A Bigger Splash, 1967; Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures), 1972), and his famous double portraits (Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy, 1970–71). From his youth in Bradford to his vibrant years in California, Hockney’s world is filled with light, intimacy, and a deep love of observation.

As the exhibition progresses, visitors encounter his shifting relationship with nature, color, and space, especially through monumental landscapes such as A Bigger Grand Canyon (1998) and Bigger Trees near Warter (2007). These works demonstrate Hockney’s ongoing exploration of seeing and perception, often defying the conventions of linear perspective and photographic realism.

A highlight of the show is the section dedicated to his years in Yorkshire and Normandy, featuring lush seasonal landscapes, daily studies on iPad (220 for 2020), and experimental renderings of skies and gardens that evoke both Van Gogh and Japanese screens. His use of digital media never feels detached or cold — quite the opposite, the framed iPad works have a warm, almost tactile presence.

Gallery 4 is devoted to portraits, both digital and painted, of friends, family, and the artist himself. Their intimacy contrasts with the grandeur of Gallery 10, where Hockney reimagines his opera set designs in a monumental video installation filled with music, light, and motion — a celebration of the artist’s lifelong love of performance.

The final room (Gallery 11) brings visitors back to London, where Hockney has lived since 2023. Here, we find his most recent and enigmatic works: contemplative, symbolic, and richly layered. Influenced by Edvard Munch and William Blake, these late paintings — including After Munch: Less is Known than People Think (2023) and After Blake (2024) — blend astronomy, myth, and personal history in ways that point toward a spiritual, perhaps even cosmic, dimension in Hockney’s work.

Throughout the exhibition, dialogues with art history play a central role. In Gallery 9, The Great Wall (2000) and other comparative displays trace Hockney’s admiration for masters such as Fra Angelico, Van Gogh, Cézanne, and Picasso. For Hockney, painting has always been a way to see the world anew — and to join a lineage of image-makers spanning centuries.

“This exhibition means an enormous amount because it is the largest exhibition I’ve ever had — 11 rooms in the Fondation Louis Vuitton,” said the artist. “Some of the very last paintings I’m working on now will be included in it, and I think it’s going to be very good.”

Indeed, this is more than a retrospective — it is a living archive of Hockney’s art.  The exhibition is exceptional for its scale (400+ works) and for presenting both classics and never-before-seen pieces.

Some of the most iconic paintings by David Hockney included in the Fondation Louis Vuitton exhibition are:

From the 1960s–70s (early iconic works):

„A Bigger Splash“ (1967) – perhaps his most famous work, symbolizing Hockney’s California period and his fascination with water, light, and movement.

„Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)“ (1972) – a masterpiece blending portraiture and landscape, and one of the most celebrated paintings of the 20th century.

„Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy“ (1970–71) – part of his famous double portraits, capturing domestic intimacy and psychological tension.

„Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy“ (1968) – another of his important double portraits reflecting his connection to literary and artistic circles.

From later periods:

„A Bigger Grand Canyon“ (1998) – a monumental landscape work that reflects his exploration of panoramic space and multiple perspectives.

„Bigger Trees Near Warter“ (2007) – his largest painting, depicting a vast winter landscape of Yorkshire, often seen as his answer to Monet’s Water Lilies.

„May Blossom on the Roman Road“ (2009) – a vivid celebration of spring in Yorkshire, showing his devotion to nature and seasonal cycles.

Recent digital works:

„25th June 2022, Looking at the Flowers (Framed)“ (2022) – one of his digital flower portraits made on iPad but displayed in traditional frames, blending old and new.

„220 for 2020“ series – 220 iPad drawings of Normandy across the seasons, showing his embrace of digital media.

„After Munch: Less is Known than People Think“ (2023) and „After Blake: Less is Known than People Think“ (2024) – his most recent and introspective works, merging spirituality, mythology, and cosmic symbolism.