Howard Hodgkin

Howard Hodgkin (1932 - 2017) was one of Britain's most important painters and printmakers. Born in London, he studied at the Camberwell School of Art between 1949 - 50, followed by the Bath Academy of Art between 1950 - 1954.  

Hodgkin's paintings and prints often refer to memories and private experiences, but deliberately avoid the illustrational. Though his works often appear spontaneous, they are often the result of an extensive process of layering and over-painting. Hodgkin first began making original prints in the 1950s. In his later years he favoured the use of etching, aquatint and carborundum combined with hand-painting.  

Hodgkin's paintings and prints have been the subject of major exhibitions all over the world. His first retrospective was curated by Nicholas Serota at the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, in 1976. In 1995 The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, presented a major retrospective which toured to Europe and in 2010 they presented a dedicated prints retrospective. In 2006 a major touring exhibition travelled from Tate, London to Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin and the Reina Sofia, Madrid.

The latest exhibitions of Hodgkin's work include Cristea Roberts Gallery, London (2019); Victoria Art Gallery, Bath (2017); Hepworth Wakefield, West Yorkshire (2017), National Portrait Gallery, London (2017), Jehangir Nicholson Art Foundation, Mumbai (2015) and Aga Khan Museum, Toronto (2015). He designed the set and costumes for several opera and ballet productions throughout his lifetime, including Layla and Majnun performed by the Mark Morris Dance company in 2016.  

In 1985 Hodgkin won the Turner Prize and represented Britain in the Venice Biennale. He served as a trustee of the Tate, London and the National Gallery, London and was knighted in 1992. He was awarded the Shakespeare Prize in Hamburg in 1997, and made a Companion of Honour in 2002. 

His paintings and prints are held by most major museums including Tate, London; British Museum, London; Metropolitan Museum, New York; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Carnegie Institute, Pennsylvania and Louisiana, Denmark. 

Howard Hodgkin died aged 84 on 9 March 2017 in London, England. 

Cristea Roberts Gallery is the exclusive distributor of original prints from the Howard Hodgkin Estate.