David Hockney

Created in June 1986, Walking forms part of David Hockney's celebrated Home Made Prints series, one of the most inventive and experimental chapters in the artist's printmaking career. Produced using a colour office photocopier rather than a traditional printmaking press, these works demonstrate Hockney's lifelong fascination with new technologies and his determination to push the boundaries of image making.

Throughout the 1980s, Hockney became increasingly interested in the creative possibilities offered by emerging copying technologies. Rather than viewing the photocopier as a purely functional office machine, he recognised its potential as an artistic tool. By repeatedly feeding sheets through the machine, adjusting colour, scale and composition at each stage, he developed a process that combined elements of drawing, painting, collage and printmaking.

The resulting works are among the earliest examples of a major international artist embracing everyday technology as a serious artistic medium, anticipating many of the digital processes that would become commonplace decades later.

In Walking, Hockney reduces the human figure to a series of bold, simplified forms. Constructed from earthy brown shapes and animated by energetic red linear marks, the figure moves confidently across the sheet with a sense of rhythm and momentum that belies the apparent simplicity of the composition.

Movement has long been a recurring theme within Hockney's work and here he captures the essence of a walking figure with remarkable economy. The image feels both spontaneous and carefully considered, balancing abstraction with recognisable human form. The loose lines and gestural marks create a feeling of immediacy, while the composition retains the elegance and clarity that define much of Hockney's work from this period.

The Home Made Prints series marks an important moment in Hockney's artistic development. While many printmakers remained committed to traditional techniques, Hockney was exploring how new technologies could expand visual language and offer fresh creative possibilities.

These works can now be seen as a precursor to his later experiments with fax machines, digital drawing programmes, iPhones and iPads. They reveal a consistent thread throughout his career: a belief that artistic practice should evolve alongside the tools available to each generation.

What remains most remarkable is the hand-made quality of the finished image. Despite the use of mechanical reproduction, the artist's touch is evident throughout, resulting in works that feel intimate, direct and unmistakably personal.

Walking is printed on 120g Arches rag paper, one of the most respected papers used within fine art printmaking. Manufactured in France for centuries, Arches has been favoured by many of the twentieth century's most important artists, including Picasso, Matisse, Chagall and Miró. Its exceptional quality and archival properties make it a particularly desirable support for works on paper.

Works from the Home Made Prints series appear relatively infrequently on the secondary market, particularly compared with Hockney's larger print editions. Their combination of rarity, innovation and historical significance has led to growing appreciation amongst collectors and institutions alike.

Created during a pivotal period in Hockney's career, Walking captures the curiosity, wit and inventive spirit that have made him one of Britain's most influential living artists. Both visually engaging and historically important, it represents a fascinating intersection between traditional draughtsmanship and emerging technology, offering collectors an opportunity to acquire a work from one of the most forward-thinking series of the 1980s.