Rethinking the Image

More images: https://www.serpentinegalleries.org/about/press/david-hockney-a-year-in-normandie-and-some-other-thoughts-about-painting/ (Accessed: 29 March 2026).

In the tranquil setting of Kensington Gardens, David Hockney’s latest solo exhibition brings his ninety-metre-long frieze, A Year in Normandie (2020-21), to London. I’ve read some differing opinions on this exhibition, so it’s with a sense of curious anticipation that I make my way to the Serpentine North Gallery to see it for myself.

Running around the inside perimeter of the gallery, A Year in Normandie depicts the changing seasons in the surroundings of the artist’s former studio, located in the historic French region.^[1] Inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry, it consists of around 100 images – created by Hockney on an iPad using custom-made rubber brushes – which have been digitally collaged and printed out on a very long strip of paper.^[2][3]

We begin in the depths of winter, where bare trees sit idly against a sparse background. Before long, the first flashes of colour begin to appear, with pink cherry blossom and yellow daffodils accompanying increasingly luscious greens. Spring has arrived, and Hockney is making full use of the virtual tools at his disposal, building up his joyful images with dots, dollops, and dashes of vibrant colour.

Trees, fields, houses, footpaths, hills, haybales, and hazy vistas. Rivers, bushes, crops, log piles, fallen leaves, and snow. Particularly impressive, especially given the inherent constraints of his chosen medium, is Hockney’s convincing handling of the shimmering ponds and rushing streams which punctuate the fertile landscape. Equally, his purple-tinged tree branches evidence his astute observation of nature, and his elongated, noodle-like raindrops perfectly communicate the feeling of an April shower.

Displayed against a dark wall, and with the help of some clever, focused lighting, it’s easy to forget that I’m looking at paper rather than pixels, such is the intensity of colour that the work radiates. If I have any criticism of A Year in Normandie, it’s one which has been expressed elsewhere – some of the joins between panels are rather obvious, occasionally undermining its immersive effect.

On this cloudy Tuesday afternoon, the gallery is very busy, with lots of people taking photographs and trading observations. Beauty in nature can be appreciated by everyone, especially when it’s conveyed in such a relatable and easygoing style. People are drawn to Hockney’s work, I would suggest, because they can see exactly how it’s made; the layering of those dots and dollops tells as much of a story as the chronology of the work as a whole.

A Year in Normandie is accompanied in this exhibition by a series of ten very recent acrylic paintings, each featuring a checkered tablecloth depicted in striking reverse perspective. Five of these works are portraits depicting friends, family, and carers, while the others are still lifes which curiously substitute the human sitter for a work of abstract art – a painting within a painting.

Two of these portraits make direct visual reference to the landscapes of A Year in Normandie; there is continuity, too, in the way in which these images are built up with small marks of pure colour. The sitters’ faces are expressive, their gazes probing; here, Hockney marries the heartfelt and the whimsical in a way which perfectly encapsulates his ebullient outlook on life.

[1] Serpentine Galleries (no date) David Hockney: A Year in Normandie and Some Other Thoughts About Painting. Available at: https://www.serpentinegalleries.org/whats-on/david-hockney-a-year-in-normandie-and-some-other-thoughts-about-painting-exhibition-serpentine-galleries/ (Accessed: 29 March 2026).

[2] Serpentine Galleries (no date) David Hockney: A Year in Normandie and Some Other Thoughts About Painting. [Exhibition guide]. Available at: https://d37zoqglehb9o7.cloudfront.net/uploads/2025/09/Serpentine-Exhibition-Guide_David-Hockney_A-Year-in-Normandie-and-Some-Other-Thoughts-about-Painting.pdf (Accessed: 29 March 2026).

[3] Eastham, B. (2026) David Hockney Review – A 90-Metre Vision of Nature That Only Looks Great on Your Phone. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2026/mar/11/david-hockney-a-year-in-normandie-and-some-other-thoughts-about-painting-review-serpentine-north (Accessed: 29 March 2026).