Page 75 - Studio International - March April 1975

naturalism flirting with hyper-
Hockney realism, move nonchalantly
around"; or: 'The shower is a
Florilegium cultural cliché exploited by the
mythologies of the Série Noire
novels". Hockney 'an intimist who
paints to depict" is also compared
The David Hockney exhibition with the 'fin de siècle Symbolists,
recently presented in Paris, at the since his painting is so sensitive,
Musée des Arts Décoratifs, intimate, decadent and literary",
aroused mainly enthusiastic but Jacques Michel adds that this
comments from the French press. painting 'belongs to the
The simultaneous release of "modernist" aesthetic of pop art;
Jack Hazan's film on Hockney, not so the drawings . it is they
'A Bigger Splash', which which give the clearest idea of
supplies complementary views on Hockney's personality .
the artist, has in general been Strangely enough, the style is that
associated with the exhibition to
of French Pre-Impressionist
the extent that 'his work is a
drawing, at the time when
rebus. And it is one of these
realism was discovering the colours
enigmas that Jack Hazan's film of life and the taste for rapid and
has attempted to solve." The vibrant sketches." Hockney is
retrospective, grouping thirty continually praised for his
paintings and seventy-five humour: 'Hockney's qualities and
drawings, enabled the tracing of
JH Yes. It has been shown at little details. They were very the evolution of works which the limits lie in the freshness of the
Cannes, in Paris, at Locarno and important to us. critics have tried to define and vision and the humour of the
New York and of course it opened DM When Jack and I were put in context. For one 'Hockney interpretation . Relaxed, he
in Paris to coincide with David driving to film them, we would is the survival of the dandyism of laughs at himself, he laughs at
Hockney's big retrospective always slip off at a flower stall so Oscar Wilde's time in the heart of fashions but always from the end
exhibition at the Louvre. It was in that we could take them in, as a swinging London"; for another he of his paintbrush :6; 'The
competition at Locarno and won gift, when we arrived. They 'is without doubt one of the best ambiguity lies in this strange
the second Grand Prix and the probably ended up in the shot, or painters of his generation"; he is perpetual mixture of fidelity and
award for the most outstanding they were handed to Henry to also 'a XXth century classic'4. treachery, offalse naivety and real
cinematography. It also won an bring in. On the other hand, Claude Bouyeure describes him tenderness, of ferocity and
award in Chicago. Henry might even buy his flowers as being 'beyond trends . reserved humour...'3 , and
Pierre Mazars concludes his
KG-Y The film was to have before he arrived at David's in his through passing epochs, schools article in the 'Figaro' with9:
opened the London Film Festival taxi. and fashions he has only obeyed his 'if there is coldness in this work, it
wasn't it? But it was thought KG-Y Some sequences must have own .'5, while for Otto Hahn(' he
unsuitable by the Director of the taken a lot of setting up. Take, for 'is the English equivalent to Andy is that of humour.' The
autobiographical nature of the
British Film Institute, Keith example, the scene we mentioned Warhol. But American work is flatteringly noted : 'His
Lucas. What do you think made earlier, in the car when David aggressiveness remains unfamiliar work is an intimate diary. It's
it unsuitable for an auspicious to him .'; José Pierre' contrasts
night like the First Night of the Hockney decides to go off and the vision of reality between the Proust revealing his emotions in
Film Festival. The love scene? look at his painting of Patrick'and same two painters: 'But where images and colours .1, while for
Mo says 'What do you want to do Claude Bouyeure: 'Hockney is
JH Many people say that the love that for?' Warhol covers everything with a Proust's other self. Not a pale
scene is in bad taste and is only sort of funereal glaze, tins of plagiarism of Proust, but Proust
there for commercial reasons. We JH I knew I wanted to plant some Campbell soup with the face of freed of the inhibitions and the
resist that for it is not true at all. questions for Mo to say for some Marilyn Monroe, David Hockney snobbery which gave him that
The reason it is there is that we are months. I had a false start. I on the contrary rejoices in the painfully admiring or hurt look.'
treating a gay world, but up to turned up and although I had perishable creatures that we are.' (Can enthusiasm go further?) In
that moment you don't really made an arrangement for David Daniel Marchesseau3 compares recognizing his voyeur side, the
know what they do. We wanted to to do this scene I couldn't get him Hockney and Warhol 'when the sharpness of his vision enchants
bring home to the audience that it out of bed, something had hand exposes the legibility of an them: 'with the help of tiny signs,
is a gay world — these men are happened — he was too depressed. ultra-sophisticated motif '. he scrapes away the surface, he
homosexual and make love to So I abandoned that. Because it The critics recognize that digs up, he roots up and unites in a
men. One of the couple is Peter was put off and he'd let me down Hockney holds an original place in haste both striking and subjective,
and it shows an infidelity on his he agreed to let me do it on the the figurative art of today and everything constituting
part. Without the love scene with following Sunday. It was 'Don't insist on the literary and cultural temperament, character,
boys, it would have made the film worry chaps, I'll be all right'. But aspect of his work : 'Hockney essence, the essential. He becomes
camp and unreal and we wanted he wasn't all right on the day. He multiplies inferences and cultural excited to arouse our
to avoid the possibility of that. was in a terrible state. We had to references In this history of art excitement."
We treated it as we found it and mount the camera on the car, landscape, people who are
didn't overemphasize it. which is dodgy and a bit relations of Bacon and Klee in the The problem of homosexuality
precarious and takes a lot of time
KG-Y What about the flowers and to set up. But believe me, we set it beginning, then evolving towards a is of course openly considered by
Celia? She always seems so up within seven minutes because
composed.
David had no time at all. He was
DM Celia is a very individual very nervous and very impatient.
woman and her home, for The fact that he was in such a bad
instance, is very similar to state meant that when Mo fed him
David's and probably her style of these questions, his response looks
decor has some influence on very real. He couldn't really
David. She had to have a few concentrate on the answers and
hours' notice in which to prepare looks very jumpy and nervous.
herself, which distinguishes her This appears in the movie as
from the others in the movie. She terribly naturalistic and real. We
also used to arrange flowers had to stop for a close shot and
before she was shot and buy them whatever in which David ran
first. And she arranged the decor. upstairs and got into the car and
JH We brought a lot of flowers was off again. It was a hell of a
because I got this idea that people, tense morning. We also shot the
when they went round to scene at Patrick Procktor's with
somebody's house, should always Patrick in the background
take flowers. I don't know whether mysteriously spying on him. And
they really do. But because you before you ask, we did ask him to
see so many around, every time threaten the painting with the
someone called on someone in the cigarette lighter. It is a created
movie they always took flowers. event.
We paid a lot of attention to the
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