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José Chávez Morado, 'Carnaval en Huejotzingo (Carnival in Huejotzingo)' (detail), 1939. Oil on canvas, 71.1 x 96.5 cm. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum, Gift of Dr. & Mrs. Loyal Davis © DACS 2013.
© TRACEY EMIN. All rights reserved, DACS 2013. Photo: KERRY RYAN.
Sidney Nolan, 'Ned Kelly' (detail), 1946. Enamel paint on composition board. 90.8 x 121.5 cm. National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. Gift of Sunday Reed, 1977.
Richard Rogers Partnership, Lloyd’s of London, 1978-86. © Richard Bryant / arcaidimages.com & Piano + Rogers, Centre Pompidou, Paris, 1971-77. © Francois Le Diascorn / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Throughout David Hockney RA: A Bigger Picture,
the exhibition is open late every Friday and Saturday until midnight (last admission 11.30pm).
Johan Zoffany RA: Society Observed
will be open until 10pm on Fridays.
To celebrate both David Hockney RA: A Bigger Picture and the opening of Johan Zoffany RA: Society Observed at the Royal Academy we are staging a day of activities. Watch musical entertainment in the courtyard and live interpretation about the work of Johan Zoffany RA, or collect an art detective trail to complete as a family.
Learn about the work, inspiration and practices of Royal Academicians and listen to specialist talks and films, in the John Madejski Fine Rooms, on themes such as landscape photography and the career of David Hockney RA.
(Please note: Further information will be added as activities are confirmed with our partners. Some events are bookable in advance.)
To celebrate the opening of Johan Zoffany RA: Society Observed
enjoy live classical music in the Royal Academy of Arts’ courtyard.
Be entertained by Past Pleasures, who will stage live interpretation featuring Johan Zoffany himself as he guides Queen Charlotte around the Royal Academy of Arts. Meet them in the courtyard from 10am, or hear fascinating insights about life at court at the time of Zoffany’s patronage from the royal family.
Budding young artists can take part in a drop in workshop, sketching Queen Charlotte in the Reynolds Room at 11am. Families can also complete an art detective trail.
Taste samples of Bettys delicious chocolates and talk to the Bettys team about the famous café tea rooms. For nearly a hundred years Bettys Yorkshire family business has been hand-crafting some of our country’s finest chocolates, preserving traditional skills and artistry through three generations of craft chocolatiers.
1pm and 3pm. Tours of the Royal Academy of Arts will be available throughout the day. Gallery Talk introductions to Johan Zoffany RA: Society Observed will introduce you to this radical re-evaluation of the extraordinary life and career of this brilliant and enigmatic artist.
Chris Orr RA, 'Full Steam Ahead!', 2011. Lithograph. © the artist. Photo: Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd. 2pm and 3.30pm. Tours will also be taking place in Premiums Interim Projects, an exhibition featuring the work of 17 postgraduate students in their second year at the Royal Academy Schools. Run by the Students of the Schools, this offers an excellent opportunity to view new work by emerging artists at an early stage of their studies.
As part of Saturday Social at the Royal Academy, Chris Orr discusses his work, inspirations and techniques as displayed in his Tennant Gallery exhibition, LithORRgraphy .
A Q&A session plus entry to the Tennant Gallery will follow the talk.
Listen to this talk
- Download the recording:
00:54 mins (30.9 MB)
- Subscribe to our Events podcast here
Nicholas Hawksmoor, Tower of St George-in-the-East, Wapping, 1714–29. To coincide with the current Royal Academy of Arts exhibition, curator Owen Hopkins, will explore the work of one of Britain’s most original and enduring architects, whose architecture, 350 years after his birth, continues to inspire and provoke the imagination.
Films exploring the life and career of David Hockney RA will be screened in the John Madejski Fine Rooms.
‘David Hockney in perspective’, 2.30pm
This film is a vital source of information on the work of David Hockney who is shown in his everyday world, at his Hollywood studio, as he works on a series of Grand Canyon paintings, a synthesis of his research into space and landscape. For the first time, David Hockney provides the key to his creative process, his enthusiasm, joy and humour shine through during these interviews in which the artist gives us a very personal and moving insight into his life and work. Rare archive footage shows a few highlights of Hockney’s prolific career, from Swinging London – where it all started – to opera sets and photographic collages.
This screening is now fully booked, remaining seats will be allocated on a first come, first served basis on the day.
Photo: Jean Pierre Gonçalves de Lima. © David Hockney Director Bruno Wollheim presents ‘David Hockney:
A Bigger Picture’, 4.00pm
Filmed over 3 years, this award-winning documentary is the first to gain unprecedented access to David Hockney at work as he returns from California to paint the East Yorkshire landscape of his childhood. It follows his move away from photography to find renewal in nature, working outside for the first time, through the seasons and in all weathers. As the film reaches an epic climax, a revealing portrait emerges of what inspires today's greatest living British artist. This 60’ film was originally shown on BBC1’s Imagine in a shorter version.
A Q&A session with the film-maker Bruno Wollheim will follow the screening.
This screening is now fully booked, remaining seats will be allocated on a first come, first served basis on the day.
The British Film Institute presents A Bigger Splash, 6.30pm
From 1971-1973, Jack Hazan gained intimate access to David Hockney and his circle of friends and lovers to create A Bigger Splash. Shot in London and California, the film offers a vivid snapshot of the early 70s art scene and features appearances by numerous legendary faces. To coincide with David Hockney RA: A Bigger Picture at the Royal Academy of Arts, the BFI have re-released A Bigger Splash to provide a fascinating filmic record of one of Britain’s most recognisable artists.
This screening is now fully booked, remaining seats will be allocated on a first come, first served basis on the day.
Enjoy live music in the Hugh Casson room at the Royal Academy of Arts.
