Hockney to launch Nottingham Contemporary

Tate is loaning 17 major works for inaugural show

By Helen Stoilas | Web only
Published online 27 Jul 09 (News)

london. The Tate is set to loan a substantial number of works by David Hockney—17 in total—to Nottingham Contemporary, the new £19.4m arts centre set to open in November. The new gallery's first exhibition will re-examine the British painter's work from 1960 to 1968 (14 November-24 January 2010) with paintings such as A Bigger Splash (1967), Study for Dollboy (1960) and The Berliner and the Bavarian (1962) on loan from the London gallery. Key works on paper to go on show include Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (1961). “Tate has hands-down the best collection of Hockneys from this period," said Alex Farquharson, director of Nottingham Contemporary. The show is part of the Tate Connects initiative, established last year, which includes ten partners such as Museums Sheffield and Tyne & Wear Museums. Tate has entered into a five-year agreement with each institution, encompassing staff exchanges, joint programmes and the loan of works. Nottingham Contemporary, which was scheduled to open late 2008, was designed by architects Caruso St John.