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orywireDavid Hockney’s publicist has confirmed that the Bradford-born artist died peacefully at home on 11 June 2026. He was 88, and no cause of death has been given.
David Hockney’s death has been confirmed by his publicist, who said the Bradford-born British artist died peacefully at home on 11 June 2026. He was 88, and no cause of death has been given.
Publicist Erica Bolton said Hockney died on Thursday, according to Reuters and AP. AP reported that he died at his home in London, less than a month before his 89th birthday.
A statement reported by ITV News described Hockney as one of the most important figures in contemporary art of the 20th and 21st centuries. The central confirmed details are his death, his age and the date of death.
No cause of death has been announced. Reuters and AP both reported that no cause was given.
Hockney was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, on 9 July 1937, according to the David Hockney Foundation’s chronology. His early life in Yorkshire remained an important part of his public identity, even as his career became closely associated with Los Angeles, London and later Normandy.
He studied at Bradford School of Art before going to the Royal College of Art in London. His rise in the 1960s made him one of the best-known British artists of the post-war period, with a style that moved between Pop Art, portraiture, landscape, photography, stage design and digital drawing.
Although the swimming pools and bright light of California became central to his international reputation, Hockney repeatedly returned to English subjects. His Yorkshire landscapes, portraits and later work helped keep his connection to Bradford and the wider English art world at the centre of his career.
Hockney became known for work that was immediately recognisable: clear colour, bold composition and a constant interest in how people see. His major works included A Bigger Splash, Mr and Mrs Clark and Percy and Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures).
AP described a seven-decade career in which he reworked portraiture, landscape painting and Pop Art while using painting, collage, photography and digital drawing. Reuters reported that Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) sold for $90.3m in 2018, then a record price for a work by a living artist.
His later use of iPads and other digital tools kept him in public view well beyond the generation in which he first became famous. He also designed The Queen’s Window at Westminster Abbey, unveiled in 2018.
Tributes came from the art world and public figures after the announcement of his death.
Reuters reported that London mayor Sadiq Khan called Hockney “a true icon and revolutionary of British art”. Culture minister Lisa Nandy described him as “a true titan of British art”, while Tate Britain director Alex Farquharson said Hockney was an “endlessly inventive artist” and that the loss to the art world was immense.
ITV News reported that a No 10 spokeswoman said the Prime Minister was saddened to hear of Hockney’s death and that his vivid, instantly recognisable work had influenced generations of artists.
In Bradford, Sky News reported that local MP Naz Shah paid tribute to Hockney’s creativity and vision, saying he had inspired millions around the world.
The cause of death has not been confirmed. No official statement checked for this article gave a medical cause or further circumstances.
Readers should treat any unsupported claims about the cause of death, funeral arrangements or private family details with caution unless they are attributed to Hockney’s representatives, family or an official institution involved in any memorial plans.
Further confirmed details should come from his representatives, official Hockney channels, Tate, other major galleries or public bodies directly involved in tributes and memorial arrangements.
