Prehistoric Museum near Palm Springs, California, Sept. 1982

Artist David Hockney (English, born 1937)

DateSeptember 1982

MediumGelatin silver prints

DimensionsFramed: 85 1/4 × 57 1/4 × 2 3/4 inches (216.54 × 145.42 × 6.99 cm)

Credit LinePurchase: acquired through the generosity of the Hall Family Foundation

Object number2024.4

SignedSigned on image recto, bottom, in white pen.

InscribedOn sheet recto, bottom, in white pen: "prehistoric museum near Palm Springs Sept 1982 #5"

Markingsnone

Edition/State/Proofed. 5/10

On View

Not on view

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Photography

Terms

DescriptionImage composed of a photographic collage depicting the entrance to an outdoor museum with large dinosaur sculptures. The photographer's long shadow stretches across a pebbled parking lot with two cars and a small sidewalk leading to a bearded man standing with his hands in his pockets.Gallery Label

Gallery Label

To make this collage of nearly 70 individual prints, David Hockney expansively photographed the Cabazon Dinosaurs, a roadside attraction near Palm Springs, California. He then assembled the prints to create the illusion of three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface. This elaborate collage technique came from Hockney’s frustrations with what he saw as the limitations of the singular photograph. “I don’t use one perspective,” said Hockney, “I use very many. That is where photography is going, multiple perspectives.”

Provenance

Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles, CA;
Purchased from Fahey/Klein Gallery by Sir Elton John, 2005;
Purchased from The Collection of Sir Elton John: The Day Sale, Christie's, New York, February 22, 2024, lot 214 by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2024.

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