Play Within a Play Within a Play and Me with a Cigarette

Here we meet David Hockney himself, sitting in a garden in a wonderfully patterned orange suit that looks almost like a leopard's coat. The artist gazes right at us through his round glasses, holding what appears to be an open book or artwork on his lap. Behind him, a bare tree twists against a sky filled with wavy blue and white lines, while colorful walls, a pink gate, and bright yellow daffodils fill the scene with energy. Painted in 2018, when Hockney was in his eighties, this work shows the famous British artist still bursting with the bold colors and playful spirit he has been known for across many decades.

The title is a bit of a puzzle, mentioning a "play within a play within a play" along with a cigarette. This points to Hockney's lifelong interest in pictures inside pictures, and in how we look at the world through layers. The flattened space and patchwork of patterns give the whole painting a flat, almost storybook quality, which is very much his style. Hockney has always loved experimenting, from photography to iPad drawings, and here he simply enjoys placing himself at the center of his own colorful world, inviting us to look back at him just as carefully as he looks at us.