‘Portraits aren’t just made up of drawing, they are made up of other insights as well.’ – David Hockney

The subject of this drawing is David Hockney’s father Kenneth (1904 – 1978). Renowned as an eccentric in his hometown of Bradford, West Yorkshire, Kenneth held strong political views and supported social causes with real passion. As a member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), Kenneth wrote numerous letters of appeal to world leaders and was known to leave copies of Peace News in public spaces locally. He was also highly particular about his appearance and would often wear a bow tie, to which he would apply paper spots; kept an array of false teeth and spectacles, labelled ‘best’, ‘next best’ etc, which he would select according to the importance of the occasion; and had a curious habit of wearing two watches, in case one happened to be wrong. Both of Hockney’s parents were extremely supportive of their son and had a profound impact on his development, particularly in his formative years. It is clear that Hockney inherited Kenneth’s flamboyant sense of style, individualism, fantastic sense of humour, and love of art, music, opera and theatre. When asked what he had most valued in his father, Hockney replied, ‘He taught me not to care what the neighbours think.’ 1
After leaving Bradford for London in 1959 to attend the Royal College of Art, Hockney maintained a close relationship with his parents. As such, it is no surprise that they have been the subject of numerous works by the artist, ranging from drawings in coloured crayon and ink, to prints, photographs, photocollages and paintings. Kenneth appears in one of Hockney’s earliest known paintings, Portrait of My Father, 1955, and later, alongside his wife Laura, in Tate’s famous double-portrait My Parents, 1977. In fact, the present work belongs to a series of preparatory drawings that Hockney made ahead of the double-portrait that he finally completed in 1977 (after two failed attempts).
In 1966, Hockney became preoccupied specifically with line drawing and, by the time he came to make the present work, he had become highly skilled at drawing in both pencil and ink. Artist’s Father Reading at Table is a superlative example from this period, which showcases both Hockney’s technical deftness and the distinctive, easy charm he brought to the medium.

1 The artist cited in Portrait of David Hockney, Peter Webb, Chatto & Windus, London, 1988, p3