Victoria Zaks
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Property from a Private Collection, Rancho Santa Fe
Lot 86
David Hockney(born 1937)The Blue Guitar 20
7 October 2025, 10:00 PDT
Los AngelesSold for US$70,350 inc. premium
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Morisa Rosenberg
Head of Department
Catherine Lay
Cataloguer
David Hockney (born 1937)
The Blue Guitar (SAC 199-217, MCA Tokyo 178-197), 1976-77
The complete portfolio, comprising 20 etchings with aquatint in colors on Inveresk mould-made paper, each signed in pencil and annotated 'A.P. XIX/XXXV' (an artist's proof, aside from the edition of 200 in Arabic numerals), published/printed by Petersburg Press, London and New York, with justification and title page, loose (as issued), with original leather-covered portfolio case, with full margins, each framed. (20)
each plate approx. 16 7/8 x 13 3/4in (42.9 x 34.9cm) or reverse
each sheet 20 9/16 x 18in (52.2 x 45.7cm) or reverse
The complete portfolio, comprising 20 etchings with aquatint in colors on Inveresk mould-made paper, each signed in pencil and annotated 'A.P. XIX/XXXV' (an artist's proof, aside from the edition of 200 in Arabic numerals), published/printed by Petersburg Press, London and New York, with justification and title page, loose (as issued), with original leather-covered portfolio case, with full margins, each framed. (20)
each plate approx. 16 7/8 x 13 3/4in (42.9 x 34.9cm) or reverse
each sheet 20 9/16 x 18in (52.2 x 45.7cm) or reverse
Footnotes
Lot Essay
David Hockney had plans to experiment with Cubism long before he began creating The Blue Guitar series, but his inspiration finally came in 1936 from Wallace Stevens's poem The Man with the Blue Guitar. The poem itself was inspired by Pablo Picasso's The Old Guitarist and explores how our reality is often shaped by the imagination.
Hockney described his etchings as being "about transformations within art as well as the relation between reality and the imagination," wherein he juxtaposed different styles of representation and imagery within the same frame. He drew inspiration not only from the poem but also from Picasso's printmaking techniques.
After Picasso's death in 1973, Hockney chose to work in the studio of Aldo Crommelynck, Picasso's longtime friend and collaborator. It was there that Hockney learned the sugar-lift aquatint method, a technique frequently used by Picasso and utilized throughout this series of etchings. Both artists deeply appreciated the experimental nature of printmaking and its capacity to depict everyday objects in surreal ways, allowing viewers to perceive reality from a fresh perspective.
Hockney's series of etchings does not serve as a literal representation of the poem but rather offers various interpretations of its themes. The result is a collection of twenty etchings that evoke dreamlike states and uncanny imagery. The print following the title page directly references Picasso's original piece, but as the series progresses, Hockney constructs surreal landscapes filled with abstracted objects and forms that defy conventional visual logic.