From his earliest days as an artist, Hockney has been fascinated by the human form and the technical challenges it presents. Going beyond the demands of visual representation, he has devoted a lifetime's effort to capturing the emotional depth of his sitters, and for this reason he prefers to paint and draw people he already knows well. This has the effect of imbuing his portraits with great intimacy; they serve as an unguarded dialogue between artist and sitter.

This is especially true of his printed portraits. His etchings and lithographs share a common purpose with his drawings and explore the same technical demands. One of his greatest statements of intent arrived with the Friends portfolio in 1976.

It was produced at the legendary Gemini G.E.L. workshop in Los Angeles, presided over by the master printer Ken Tyler. Hockney had first encountered Tyler in 1964 at the Tamarind Lithography Workshop, and had gone on to establish an incredibly fruitful working relationship that resulted in some of the century's greatest print portfolios, including A Hollywood Collection and The Weather Series. Tyler's importance in Hockney's engagement with lithography cannot be overstated.

The Friends lithographs include portraits of Henry Geldzahler (Curator for 20th century Art at the Met in New York), the author Christopher Isherwood, model Joe McDonald and, as in this work, Gregory Evans. A lifelong friend and former lover, Evans has appeared in Hockney's work for more than fifty years and charts a staggering course of innovation and artistic evolution.

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