Hockney began drawing on touch screens when he got his first iPhone in 2009. By 2010, he extended his practice to a bigger screen by using an iPad which, enlarged his artistic repertoire and enabled an even more complex interplay of colour, light, and line. For many years, the artist began each day by doodling flowers, which his boyfriend would leave for him on his bedside table, and emailing his digitized bouquets to his closest friends. With the portable device and stylus in hand, Hockney is able to conveniently work outdoors without having to lug heavy materials with him. With the iPad Drawings, Art Edition (No. 751–1,000), 2019 David Hockney follows the course of the seasons through the window of his Yorkshire home. The viewer gets to experience the passage of time through the eyes of David Hockney and the use of his iPad to create the drawings.
“ With the iPad, I use my fingers to zoom in for details, then zoom back out. There’s magic in an iPad. It’s the same magic that’s in pencil or pen or brushes. „