The Student
from Homage to Picasso

Medium: Etching and aquatint on German mould-made Museum Board
Year: 1973
Image: 22 5/8 x 17 3/8 inches (57.5 x 44 cm)
Sheet: 29 3/4 x 22 1/2 inches (74.4 x 57 cm)
Edition: 90
Other: 30 (numbered in Roman numeral)
Artist’s Proofs: 60, issued in 4 groups of 15
Publishers: Propyläen Verlag, Berlin and Panthéon Press, Rome
Literature: Scottish Arts Council (153), Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (143)

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

This print was part of the portfolio »Hommage à Picasso« (Vol. 2) from 1973, for which more than 50 international artists created a graphic contribution.

The Student: Homage to Picasso by David Hockney is, as the title establishes, an ode to the influence of Pablo Picasso on Hockney’s own artistic journey. Picasso was renowned for challenging tradition in the pursuit of innovation, effectively creating new epochs of art. In 1960, London’s Tate Gallery held a Picasso retrospective during Hockney’s tenure as a student at the Royal College of Art. Swept up in the wave of “Picassomania”, Hockney visited the exhibition eight times, the Spanish titan’s redefining innovation leaving his indelible imprint on the young artist. From the distorted perspective of Cubism to Picasso’s indelible grasp of diverse printing techniques, the modern master cemented a stronghold in the young Hockney’s mind and would continue to influence many of Hockney’s seminal works from then on.

“I think Picasso was the great portraitist because of Cubism. It can make you see another way, and begin to deal with it.”

Thirteen years later, Picasso died in his home in Mougins, the south of France. In response, Hockney moved to Paris to work with Aldo Crommelynck – Picasso’s personal master printer for the previous twenty years – where the pair would create The Student. The work is part of a portfolio Hommage à Picasso II which comprised prints by a number of seminal contemporaries including Niki de Saint Phalle, Cy Twombly and Richard Hamilton, all  of whom were brought together in their dedication to and celebration of the Modern titan.

This work establishes a visual dialogue between Hockney and his artistic mentor: recognisable by his signature circular glasses and Panama hat, Hockney depicts himself firmly grasping an art student’s portfolio case, looking up admiringly at a plinth topped by a monumental bust of a young Picasso. By appropriating the artist’s likeness rather than his artwork, Hockney divulges an interest in Picasso the man, exploring his persona and way of thinking. Furthermore, Hockney twists the Spaniard’s concept of Cubism; instead of fracturing the image spatially, he distorts time itself, inverting the ages of the two artists within an endless white void. In doing so, Hockney not only foregrounds the legacy of Picasso, but also asserts his own mastering of artistic identity.

Source: Phillips

Auction Results

Christie’s New-York: 26 February 2025
Estimated: USD 12,000 – 18,000
USD 18,900

DAVID HOCKNEY (B. 1937)
The Student, from Homage to Picasso (MCAT 143), 1973
Etching and aquatint on Arches paper
Signed and dated in pencil, numbered ‘H.C. 11/15’
An hors-commerce impression
The edition was 90 in Arabic numerals and 30 in Roman numerals plus 60 artist’s proofs

Sotheby’s London: 15 November 2023
Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000
GBP 20,320 / USD 25,390

DAVID HOCKNEY (b. 1937)
The Student (from Homage to Picasso) (S.A.C. 153; MCA Tokyo 143), 1973
Etching and aquatint on Arches mould-made paper
Signed in pencil, dated, inscribed and numbered E.A. 13/15
One of 60 artist’s proofs (issued in four groups of 15) aside from the numbered edition of 90

Christie’s New-York: 10 November 2023
Estimated: USD 10,000 – 15,000
USD 40,320

DAVID HOCKNEY (B. 1937)
The Student: Homage to Picasso, 1973
Etching and aquatint on Arches paper
Numbered ‘EA 2⁄15’ (lower left)
Signed and dated ‘David Hockney 73’ (lower right)

Christie’s London: 28 September 2022
Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000
GBP 16,380 / USD 17,570

DAVID HOCKNEY (b. 1937)
The Student, from: Homage to Picasso, 1973
Etching and aquatint
Signed and dated in pencil
Presumably from the numbered edition of ninety

Van Ham Cologne: 1 June 2022
Estimated: EUR 8,000 – 12,000
EUR 26,400 / USD 28,440

DAVID HOCKNEY (1937 Bradford)
The Student, From: Hommage à Picasso, 1972
Aquatint on wove paper
Signed, dated and numbered 29/90

Phillips London: 14 June 2021
Estimated: GBP 6,000 – 8,000
GBP 20,160 / USD 28,425