Red Celia
from Moving Focus

Medium: Lithograph in colors on HMP handmade paper
Year: 1984-1985
Sheet: 30 x 12 1/2 inches (76×55 cm)
Edition: 82
Artist’s Proofs: 18 AP
Publisher: Tyler Graphics Ltd., Bedford, New York
Literature: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (267); Tyler (273)

Signed, dated and numbered in pencil with the publisher’s blindstamp

Red Celia features David Hockney’s lifelong friend and muse, the British textile and fashion designer Celia Birtwell. The print is a striking and emotionally resonant portrait that captures Birtwell in a moment of quiet repose. As part of Hockney’s innovative Moving Focus series, the work showcases his evolving approach to depicting space and time through printmaking.

Red Celia portrays Celia Birtwell, seated in profile with her hands clasped behind her head. The composition is dominated by bold and expressive reds and blue-toned washes of ink. The striking color palette creates an intense, emotional atmosphere, contrasting with Hockney’s more naturalistic paintings of Celia. While the overall work has the feel of a quick sketch, the use of lithography gives it the weight and texture of a painting. Much of Birtwell’s form is suggested through broad washes of color. In contrast, fine, precise lines, created by scoring away ink, define features like her eye and hair.

Red Celia is a deeply personal and intimate portrait of Birtwell, a close friend and frequent subject for Hockney since 1968. The work captures not just her likeness but a moment of shared intimacy between artist and muse. The portrait suggests a reflective or pensive mood, leaving the viewer to interpret Celia’s inner thoughts. Hockney emphasizes her “intuitive knowledge and kindness,” capturing the emotional depth he saw in her face. The dramatic pose and expressive use of color recall the emotionally charged portraits of Henri Matisse. The stylistic contrast between delicate lines and soft tones echoes Hockney’s “friendly rivalry” with Pablo Picasso, whose works were a major influence on the larger Moving Focus series.

Red Celia was created as part of Hockney’s Moving Focus series, a body of twenty-nine prints released between 1984 and 1986. For this series, Hockney experimented with depicting space and multi-point perspective, an obsession during this period. The different prints in the series vary in style and subject, exploring various visual experiences and locations. As a lithograph created with four aluminum plates and printed by Tyler Graphics, Red Celia showcases Hockney’s innovative use of the printing medium.

Auction Results

LA Modern: 7 September 2023
Estimated: USD 25,000 – 35,000
USD 32,760

Heritage Auctions: 26 October 2022
Estimated: USD 20,000 – 40,000
USD 32,500

DAVID HOCKNEY (B. 1937)
Red Celia from Moving Focus, 1984
Lithograph in colors on HMP handmade paper
Signed, numbered 59/82, and dated in pencil along lower edge

Freeman’s Hindman: 11 May 2022
Estimated: USD 20,000 – 30,000
USD 40,950

DAVID HOCKNEY (British, b. 1937)
Red Celia, 1984
Lithograph in colors on HMP handmade paper
Signed, dated and numbered 47/82 in pencil

Christie’s New-York: 15 September 2021
Estimated: USD 15,000 – 20,000
USD 33,750

DAVID HOCKNEY (B. 1937)
Red Celia, 1984-1985
Lithograph in red on TGL handmade paper
Signed and dated in pencil, numbered 54/82

Rago: 19 May 2021
Estimated: USD 10,000 – 15,000
USD 40,000

DAVID HOCKNEY
Red Celia (from Moving Focus), 1984
Lithograph in colors on HMP handmade paper
Signed, dated and numbered to lower right ’41/82 David Hockney 84′