Hockney dives into digital art at Lightroom exhibit in Seoul

Arts & Design

Published: 08 Nov. 2023, 15:38

Hockney dives into digital art at Lightroom exhibit in Seoul

An installation image from David Hockney's “Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)” exhibition at Lightroom Seoul in Gangdong District, eastern Seoul [LIGHTROOM SEOUL]

David Hockney, the 86-year-old English artist known for painting colorful, bold sceneries of swimming pools and landscapes, has been diving into digital art for some time now.

He’s been known to experiment with drawing on handheld devices, especially iPads, which were exhibited in art venues like the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

Back in February, he collaborated with Lightroom, a London-based gallery space, at which Hockney held a solo immersive media show. Lightroom earlier this month launched its Seoul branch in Gangdong District, eastern Seoul, its first space in a city outside of London.

The artist’s “Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)” exhibition takes visitors on a 50-minute journey through his art world, spanning 60 years through large-scale projections onto five surfaces — the four walls and the floor — inside the space.

From feeling like you are walking in a vibrant animated forest to getting glimpses of pages from his sketchbooks, the voice of Hockney himself narrates the show, revealing in detail the process of how his works came to fruition.

Lightroom’s CEO Richard Slaney speaks during a press conference for David Hockney's ″Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)″ exhibition in Korea on Oct. 30. [YONHAP]

“It’s his voice throughout his life,” Lightroom’s CEO Richard Slaney told the press on Oct. 30. “So there are new recordings, but also his voice as a young man. It’s only his voice you hear in the show, and it’s a true portrait of him as an artist.”

While other media art exhibitions tend to reconstruct the works of deceased artists, Lightroom’s show is distinguishable in that it “works directly” with contemporary artists, Slaney said.

Hockney was therefore heavily involved in the production process “to make something that’s completely unique” — and the artist is “thrilled with the results.”

During the four years of collaborating with Hockney, the painter would “describe what we were looking at and recollected his process and how he made that piece — and that’s become a central part of the show,” Slaney explained.

“His work is in a million galleries around the world, but this project speaks directly to people and speaks to different people, and we think that’s very powerful.”

Reporters watch scenes from David Hockney's “Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)” exhibition at Lightroom Seoul in Gangdong District, eastern Seoul, on Oct. 30. [YONHAP]

Lightroom Seoul opened after signing an exclusive intellectual property contract with Etnah Company, a local non-fungible token (NFT) art platform founded by Gallery Hyundai’s CEO Do Hyung-teh and Altava Group’s CEO Andrew Ku. Altava Group is an IT company that collaborates with high-end fashion brands like Fendi to create NFTs for the metaverse.

Etnah Company has digitized NFT forms of artworks by Lee Kun-yong and Kenny Scharf.

“Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)” continues until May 31 next year. Reservations for tickets are required according to a set schedule, which can be viewed here. Lightroom Seoul is open every day.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]