Man
Signed Print
David Hockney
£3,550-£5,500
$7,000-$11,000 Value Indicator
$6,500-$10,000 Value Indicator
¥35,000-¥50,000 Value Indicator
€4,050-€6,500 Value Indicator
$35,000-$60,000 Value Indicator
¥740,000-¥1,140,000 Value Indicator
$4,750-$7,500 Value Indicator
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Edition of 60, Lithograph
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Meaning & Analysis
Man is a signed lithograph print by David Hockney from 1986, reflecting how the artist’s long standing fascination with Cubism shaped the diverse and experimental nature of his creative practice. The vibrant colours of Hockney’s interior paintings and early portraits are renounced here in favour of simple black contours outlining raw forms and fragments. The representation of the titular man is inherently caricatural. The central figure consists of unrelated, abstract elements, reminding the viewer about the desire to restore the human form to its primary form shared by the Cubists. As such, the work represents Hockney’s striking departure from the buoyant imagery characterising such works as Hotel Acatlan: Two Weeks Later, created only one year before Man.
The image of the ambiguous human figure consists of a simple facial outline and two oval elements placed on top of oversized limbs. The man’s head is turned towards the left, exposing only one profile. Executed with a simple black line, the huge legs resemble chunky boots and, given their size and shape, clash with other surrounding elements. The juxtaposition of abstract elements seems to compose an ambiguous yet complete image of the human figure. At the same time, the lack of explicit connection between different parts makes them come across separate and independent, challenging the initial impression of wholeness. The print sheds light on the experimental spirit and intellectual restlessness of the beloved British artist who famously said, “at Bradford School of Art the Gods were Degas and Sickert, I wanted Picasso.”