David Hockney, legendary British artist, dies aged 88

Influential artist David Hockney has died at the age of 88, his publicist has confirmed.

Known as an important contributor to the pop art movement in the 1960s, Hockney died peacefully at his home, a month before his 89th birthday.

A statement said: “The celebrated British artist David Hockney, one of the most important figures in contemporary art in both the 20th and 21st centuries, passed away peacefully at home on 11 June 2026, one month short of his 89th birthday.”

Hockney’s career spanned six decades, best known for his multimedia approach to his paintings, using traditional painting, printmaking, photography and digital art. In his early career, Hockney was best known for his paintings of swimming pools that defined the Los Angeles aesthetic.

Born in Bradford in 1937, Hockney was the fourth of five children. He studied at the Royal College of Art where, he and Peter Blake, featured in the exhibition New Contemporaries, which announced the arrival of British art. It was then when he became associated with the movement.

He then moved to Los Angeles in 1964 where he was inspired to make a series of paintings of swimming pools using vibrant colours.

His other works range from portraits of friends, his dogs, and stage designs for the Royal Court Theatre, Glyndebourne and the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

Throughout his career, Hockney received multiple honours, including being appointed by Queen Elizabeth II to the Order of the Companions of Honour in 1997 and to the Order of Merit in 2012.

In a change to the schedules, BBC Two will air David Hockney: A Bigger Picture – imagine… at 11pm tonight, following the artist over three years as he returned to Yorkshire to paint the changing landscape of his childhood.

Tributes have poured in for the artist, with many expressing their condolences on social media.

Art historian Richard Morris shared on X: “Shocked to hear David Hockney has died. His huge achievement was to make serious painting look effortless. He carried forward one of the most sustained investigations into vision, space and representation by any post-war artist. British art has lost a giant.”

While another penned: “What a huge loss… #DavidHockney gave us some of the most wonderful pieces of art. And he wasn’t afraid to embrace technology producing many works later in life on an iPad. Thank you for making the world a more beautiful place Mr Hockney.”