The Blue Guitar

1976-1977

David Hockney

Associated Names
David Hockney
Artist, British, 1937 - 2026
The artwork features a vertical composition with a predominantly white background. At the top, a stylized representation of a guitar is sketched in blue, with abstract shapes suggesting the body and strings. Below the guitar, the text "THE BLUE GUITAR" is centered, written in alternating blue and red letters. Additional text follows, also in blue and red, detailing: "ETCHINGS BY DAVID HOCKNEY WHO WAS INSPIRED BY WALLACE STEVENS WHO WAS INSPIRED BY PABLO PICASSO." The artwork is bordered by a pattern of blue and red dashes, creating a frame-like effect. The bottom right corner contains a signature.
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Artwork overview

Associated Artworks

See all 20 artworks
The image depicts a clean, rectangular shape on a beige background with subtle, straight and curved lines adding texture. The composition has an abstract quality, with faint lines blending into the backdrop. In the center-right, the words "THE BLUE GUITAR" are embossed.

The Blue Guitar

David Hockney, Petersburg Press
1977
This print shows an elderly person playing guitar. The person is seated and wearing loose-fitting clothing. They appear to have a gaunt face and a bald head. The individual is barefoot and has one leg crossed over the other, with their head bent down and one shoulder raised up. Their skin is pale blue, and the background and the guitar are in darker shades of blue. Surrounding this central print is a background with decorative elements in orange and green. Text on the top and bottom reads, "PABLO PICASSO Spanish 1881" and "THE OLD GUITARIST 1903."

The Old Guitarist

David Hockney
1976
The artwork features geometric and abstract shapes. On the left, there is a tall, slender structure with a lattice pattern next to a zigzag column with a tree on top. On the right, a rectangular block serves as a pedestal for vertically standing shapes with colorful extensions. Below, there is a line-drawn outline of a pottery-like object beside a surface with a spherical pattern. The background includes subtle lines and clouds.

A Tune

David Hockney
1976

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Mrs. Robert A. Hauslohner, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; acquired 1991 by the National Gallery of Art

Associated Names

Bibliography

1991

  • Art for the Nation: Gifts in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1991: p.460.

1996

  • Tōkyō-to Gendai Bijutsukan. David Hockney: Prints 1954-1995. Tokyo, Japan: Museum of Contemporary Art and Tankosha Publishing Co., 1996, no. 178.

Inscriptions

lower left in graphite: 18/200; lower right in graphite: David Hockney;

text in plate: THE BLUE / GUITAR / ETCHINGS / BY / DAVID HOCKNEY / WHO WAS INSPIRED / BY / WALLA CE STEVENS / WHO WAS INSPIRED / BY / PABLO PICASSO

Wikidata ID

Q74888370

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