The Joy of Nature, a New Hockney Exhibit at the Van Gogh Museum

David Hockney Van Gogh Joy of Nature Van Gogh Museum Hockney Exhibit

David Hockney painting “May Blossom on the Roman Road”, 2009, © David Hockney, Photo credit: Jean-Pierre Gonçalves de Lima

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is a must-visit for modern art fans. In addition to housing a world-class collection of work by Van Gogh, the museum also offers exhibitions that contextualize the Post-Impressionist‘s influence on contemporary artists. The latest show to illustrate this approach is Hockney – Van Gogh. The Joy of Nature, a major exhibition planned for the spring.

This highly anticipated show will feature an eclectic collection of over 120 works by Hockney, one of the most prolific living Pop artists. Specifically, it will include pages from his sketchbooks, large-format versions of his iPad drawings, videos, watercolors, prints, and his famous large-scale landscape paintings.

While much of Hockney's oeuvre illustrates the influence of Van Gogh, it is most evident in these landscapes. Hockney began producing these pieces in the 1990s, when he returned to his native England from Los Angeles. “These paintings, the so-called Yorkshire landscapes, reveal thorough observations of the changing four seasons, and how light, space and nature are constantly in flux,” the museum says in a press release.

David Hockney, “More Felled Trees on Woldgate”, 2008, Oil on 2 canvases (60 x 48″ each), 60 x 96” overall, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt

With this description in mind, it's clear that Hockney was inspired by Van Gogh, whose work he has long admired. “His paintings are full of movement,” he said. “What people love about Van Gogh's paintings is that all the brush marks are visible and you can see how they are painted. When you're drawing one blade of grass you're looking and then you see more. And then you see the other blades of grass and you're always seeing more. Well, that's exciting to me and it was exciting to Van Gogh. I mean, he saw very clearly.”

Though Hockney himself has referenced Van Gogh as an inspiration, museums have not explored this connection in depth—until now.

“Hockney is one of the most inspirational artists of our time,” Axel Rüger, the museum's director, said. “This is the first ever exhibition to explore how Van Gogh influenced his work. It is an absolute honour to have the opportunity to organise an exhibition such as this.”

Hockney – Van Gogh. The Joy of Nature will be on-view at the Van Gogh Museum from March 1 to May 26, 2019. Advanced tickets are available online.

Hockney – Van Gogh. The Joy of Nature, a new exhibition at the Van Gogh Museum, will highlight Vincent van Gogh's influence on David Hockney.

Vincent van Gogh, “The Harvest” June 1888, Oil on canvas, 73.4 cm x 91.8 cm, Credits (obliged to state): Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation)

David Hockney, “Woldgate Vista, 27 July 2005″, Oil on canvas, 24 x 36”, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt

In addition to drawings, prints, and sketches, this Hockney exhibition will feature a collection of large-scale landscapes.

David Hockney, “Kilham to Langtoft II, 27 July 2005″, Oil on canvas, 24 x 36”, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt

David Hockney, The Arrival of Spring in Woldgate, East Yorkshire in 2011 (twenty eleven), Oil on 32 canvases (36 x 48″ each), 144 x 384″ overall, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt, Collection Société des Amis du Musée national d'Art moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris

David Hockney, “May Blossom on the Roman Road”, 2009, Oil on 8 canvases (36 x 48″ each), 72 x 192″ overall, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt

David Hockney, “Woldgate Woods, 6 & 9 November 2006″, Oil on 6 canvases (36 x 48″ each), 72 x 144” overall, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt

David Hockney, “Woldgate Woods, 26, 27 & 30 July 2006″, Oil on 6 canvases (36 x 48” each), 72 x 144” overall, © David Hockney, Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt