A rare painting by David Hockney of his beloved dachshund Stanley could fetch up to £2.5m at auction. Dog Painting 17, created in 1994-95, is believed to be one of only six works from Hockney's Dog Series in private hands and the first to be auctioned, according to Christie's.
The painting shows Stanley, Hockney's first dachshund, curled up on a cushion, fast asleep. It has an estimate of £1.5m-£2.5m and is one of more than 40 works Hockney painted for his Dog Series.
Hockney's Beloved Dachshunds
Stanley, named after Stan Laurel, was picked out as a puppy by Hockney in 1987 and followed him around constantly. Boodgie, more reserved, arrived later. According to Hockney's authorised biographer Christopher Simon Sykes, friends of the peripatetic Hockney were astonished he was getting a dog in the first place, but soon saw how besotted he was.
The noisy dachshunds became an essential part of his life in his Hollywood Hills home on Montcalm Avenue. Sykes writes that Hockney was not bothered about house training, with one friend, Jonathon Brown, recalling how the dogs used to defecate in his shoes.
An Anecdote at Dennis Hopper's House
On a visit by Hockney for dinner at the actor Dennis Hopper's Frank Gehry-designed house in Venice, LA, Boodgie left a "gift" in the middle of the floor. According to Brown, Hockney did retrospectively wag his finger, telling Boodgie "no, NO!". Then, "as Hopper's look of a chain-gang murderer increased in intensity, Hockney added: 'Oah, it'll be dry in the morning, luv, and you can just pick it up.'"
Hopper, the story goes, was left with two choices: silence or murder. "He chose silence, but he looked like murder."
Emotional Origins and Auction Details
Hockney embarked on his dog paintings when he needed some sunshine in his life. He had lost several friends to Aids and was devastated by the death of one of his closest, oldest friends, Henry Geldzahler, to pancreatic cancer. The artist told one journalist he wanted "desperately to paint something loving".
Tessa Lord, Christie's head of postwar and contemporary art, said: "He felt such a loss of love, this was kind of a catharsis for him." Lord said the painting displayed "incredible spontaneity" and "fluidity of brushstrokes, but it still feels richly textured. You've got this sort of mottling underneath the cushion and you've got that slight flick of the ear that really animates Stanley."
Christie's believes there are only six of the dog paintings in private hands, with the others owned by the David Hockney Foundation. The seller of Dog Painting 17 bought it after the dog series went on display at the LA Louver gallery, a show that Hockney said attracted 7,000 people in four days – many with their own dogs in tow.
The painting will be sold on 14 October during Frieze Week, and it will go on display – anyone can see it for free – at Christie's in London from 8 October.
