Bernard Jacobson Gallery presents an exhibition of prints spanning the career of British artist Howard Hodgkin. With an emphasis on memory and recollection, the exhibition brings together a selection of vibrant prints published and collected by Bernard Jacobson, including Hodgkin’s first ever-made series, Five Rooms (1966).
At the start of his career in the 1950s, Hodgkin focused primarily on painting, creating works characterised by their semi-abstract bold forms. Hodgkin experimented with printmaking on a few occasions during the 1950s and 1960s, but not until the 1970s did he fully explore the printmaking medium. The works in this exhibition trace Hodgkin’s development from his more graphic prints of the late 1960s to his highly layered, hand-coloured prints of subsequent decades. Working predominantly with vivid colour palettes, Hodgkin’s energetic, gestural compositions convey the artist’s emotions and facilitate a direct viewing experience.
As the prints maintain abstract qualities, they simultaneously recollect Hodgkin’s life and experiences. Prints such as Alexander Street (1978) and Thinking Aloud in the Museum of Modern Art (1979) capture people, places, and moments from the artist’s past. Hodgkin’s fond memories of his travels to India form the subject matter of For Bernard Jacobson (1979), which depicts a nocturnal view from a balcony in India.
For Bernard Jacobson also reflects Bernard’s relationship with the artist: in many of the exhibition’s prints, Bernard Jacobson plays a crucial role by acting as Hodgkin’s publisher. This dynamic holds true in For John Constable (1976), which was commissioned and published by Bernard to celebrate the bicentenary of John Constable’s birth. As the exhibition travels through Hodgkin’s recollections, so too does it look back to Bernard’s memory of the artist.
| Duration | 21 April 2022 - 14 May 2022 |
| Times | see website |
| Cost | Free |
| Venue | Bernard Jacobson Gallery |
| Address | 8 Golden Square, London, W1F 9HY |
| Contact | 4402077343431 / mail@jacobsongallery.com / www.jacobsongallery.com |