Secret Knowledge : Rediscovering the Lost Techniques of the Old Masters

Hockney, David

ISBN 10: 0500237859 / ISBN 13: 9780500237854

Published by Gardners Books, 2001

About this Item

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: Secret Knowledge : Rediscovering the Lost Techniques of the Old Masters
• Publisher: Gardners Books
• Publication Date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0500237859
• ISBN 13: 9780500237854
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

David Hockney takes us on an enthralling intellectual and visual journey as he rewrites the story of how the great drawings and paintings of the last six centuries were created. He demonstrates for the first time how artists as far back as the 15th century used mirrors and lenses to project colour images onto flat surfaces and then captured these projections in pencil and paint. As well as being the presentation of more than two years' research, Secret Knowledge is an amazing detective story, as Hockney uncovers piece after piece of scientific and historical evidence, each one revealing further secrets of the past.

Review

British painter David Hockney, well known for his cool and lovely paintings of California pools, has taken on the new role of detective. For two years Hockney seriously investigated the painting techniques of the old masters, and like any admirable sleuth, compiled substantial evidence to support his revolutionary theory. Secret Knowledge is the fruit of this labor, an exhaustive treatise in pictures revealing clues that some of the world's most famous painters, Ingres, Velázquez, Caravaggio (just to mention a few) utilized optics and lenses in creating their masterpieces. Hockney's fascination with the subject is contagious, and the book feels almost like a game with each analysis a "How'd they do that?" instead of a whodunit. While some may find the technical revelation a disappointment in terms of the idea of genius, Hockney is quick to point out that the use of optics does not diminish the immensity of artistic achievement. He reminds the reader that a tool is just a tool, and it is still the artist's hand and creative vision that produce a work of art. (296 pages, 460 illustrations, 402 in color.) --J.P. Cohen