Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
'It is, after all, the first — and, in the opinion of the artist himself, maybe the best — of an amazing series of double portraits, each of them uniquely memorable.' —Norman Rosenthal
Painted in their sun-drenched Santa Monica living room, David Hockney’s portrait of Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy showcases the artist’s unrivalled mastery of light, perspective and psychological depth. Here, every element becomes a stage for intimacy and human connection.
Hockney’s first double portrait, and likely the last to come to auction, this iconic painting depicts the celebrated English novelist and his partner, a Californian artist. The luminous composition invites us into their milieu, capturing the closeness between two figures whose relationship allowed romantic and artistic freedom to thrive in post-war Los Angeles.
Offered this November in Christie’s 20th Century Evening Sale in New York, this historic painting stands as one of Hockney’s most profound meditations on modern relationships — deeply personal yet cinematic and revolutionary.
📍 See Hockney's monument to love and courage at our Rockefeller Center galleries on 7–20 November.
🔗Explore this and other highlights at the link: christies.com/en/auction/20th-century-evening-sale-23485-nyr/?cid=EM_SM_O_YT_Inc_CON____________
📅 20th Century Evening Sale | New York | 17 November
'It is, after all, the first — and, in the opinion of the artist himself, maybe the best — of an amazing series of double portraits, each of them uniquely memorable.' —Norman Rosenthal
Painted in their sun-drenched Santa Monica living room, David Hockney’s portrait of Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy showcases the artist’s unrivalled mastery of light, perspective and psychological depth. Here, every element becomes a stage for intimacy and human connection.
Hockney’s first double portrait, and likely the last to come to auction, this iconic painting depicts the celebrated English novelist and his partner, a Californian artist. The luminous composition invites us into their milieu, capturing the closeness between two figures whose relationship allowed romantic and artistic freedom to thrive in post-war Los Angeles.
Offered this November in Christie’s 20th Century Evening Sale in New York, this historic painting stands as one of Hockney’s most profound meditations on modern relationships — deeply personal yet cinematic and revolutionary.
📍 See Hockney's monument to love and courage at our Rockefeller Center galleries on 7–20 November.
🔗Explore this and other highlights at the link: christies.com/en/auction/20th-century-evening-sale-23485-nyr/?cid=EM_SM_O_YT_Inc_CON____________
📅 20th Century Evening Sale | New York | 17 November
