David Hockney's Secret Knowledge

This documentary was shot for the BBC series "Omni Bus." John Middelkoop was credited as the camera operator. It was shot in DigiBeta 16x9 PAL format.

DVD

David Hockney at the Tate

Since he burst upon the art scene in the middle of the Sixties, David Hockney has been on of Britain's most successful painters. To mark the artist's 50th birthday in 1988, London's Tate Gallery staged a major retrospective of Hockney's work. "David Hockeny at the Tate" was prepared for the BBC's South Bank" show and features a walk-through interview with the artist conducted by Melvyn Bragg. So often we are disappointed when we hear an artist/writer/actor/musician talk about their work. That is not a problem with this effort as Hockney talks about the inspiration behind several of his major works such as "Portrait of My Father," "Mulholland Drive" and "We Two Boys Together, Clinging." One of the best parts of this 55 minute program is when the artist explains how he constructs his composite photographs, as in "A Visit with Christopher and Don." There are certainly gaps in terms of covering particular aspects of Hockney's career, but this is due more to the limitations of Tate's collection than omissions by Hockney or Bragg. I think this program is superior to "David Hockney: Portrait of an Artist," made five years earlier in the artist's London studio. This is the one I would recommend for showing to art students who will be fascinated to learn the thinking of one of the last century's greatest artists.

San Francisco Opera

When this production premiered in 1992 in Chicago, many comparisons were made between it and the Metropolitan Opera Zeffirelli production. In my opinion Mr. Hockney's production comes up second to Zeffirelli's, however it has many merits and many of them are emphasized on this beautifully reproduced DVD. Visually, because of the intense greens, blues and reds, the DVD is a knockout. Your television will never have looked better. Hockney goes for a less realistic, more story-book quality in his sets and costumes which is appropriate, since Turandot is a fairy-tale of sorts. The colors and detail are far superior to the Laserdisc edition with less "video noise" in the backgrounds and more clarity of definition and detail. Vocally, Eva Marton is not in as fresh voice as she was in the 1987 telecast from the Met or the 1992 Chicago premier. However, her performance vocally and dramatically is so intense and powerful that occasional vocal lapses scarcely seem to matter. Michael Sylvester does not have the vocal allure or richness of a Domingo or a Pavarotti, but he sings solidly and with a secure ending to "Nessun Dorma". Kevin Langan is wonderful and moving as Timur with make-up that certainly hides his true age. The vocal stand-out of this performance is Lucia Mazzaria. She sounds in many spots like a young Freni, with total mastery of color and style. Her two arias in Act III are worthy of many repeat viewings. The chorus is acceptable and for the most part accurate, but somewhat lacking in darkness and richness of color in the Italian "La Scala" style. David Runnicles' conducting is appealing if not revealing. This video is highly recommended but when the Met version is released you will want to own it as well for it's lavish and far more realistic sets and costumes from the always unbeatable Franco Zeffirelli.

Behind the Scenes with David Hockney

Since he burst upon the art scene in the middle of the Sixties, David Hockney has been on of Britain's most successful painters. To mark the artist's 50th birthday in 1988, London's Tate Gallery staged a major retrospective of Hockney's work. "David Hockeny at the Tate" was prepared for the BBC's South Bank" show and features a walk-through interview with the artist conducted by Melvyn Bragg. So often we are disappointed when we hear an artist/writer/actor/musician talk about their work. That is not a problem with this effort as Hockney talks about the inspiration behind several of his major works such as "Portrait of My Father," "Mulholland Drive" and "We Two Boys Together, Clinging." One of the best parts of this 55 minute program is when the artist explains how he constructs his composite photographs, as in "A Visit with Christopher and Don." There are certainly gaps in terms of covering particular aspects of Hockney's career, but this is due more to the limitations of Tate's collection than omissions by Hockney or Bragg. I think this program is superior to "David Hockney: Portrait of an Artist," made five years earlier in the artist's London studio. This is the one I would recommend for showing to art students who will be fascinated to learn the thinking of one of the last century's greatest artists.

Portrait of an Artist: Hockney

This video, subtitled "Hockney the Photographer," is composed of a fascinating set of interviews with the artist demonstrating his "joiner" technique of creating photographic collages that vastly expand the limits of the art of the photo. Hockney says that although he took pictures for years, he always thought of the medium as inferior because it freezes just a single moment in time, whereas paintings and drawings are not subject to this limitation. In this video he shows how he came to realize that just taking a series of photographs of a simple action--here a woman coming down a flight of steps and giving her friends each a cup of coffee--and making a "joiner" of these photographs is much more vivid and interesting and provides more information than either a single still photograph or a movie. In fact, it becomes a true work of art. The British-born artist also recreates the scenes of his famous swimming-pool paintings in the context of a discussion of his love of Los Angeles, its light and its seductive images of the male physique which inspired him to become the painter (and photographer) of that city. He feels one cannot draw a line between his photography and his painting. Definitely a fascinating watch for art-lovers, photographers, and anyone attracted to the male form. 55 minutes; color. Note: there is a small amount of full-frontal male nudity from a distance.

David Hockney: Pleasures of the Eye

A Bigger Splash (1974)