David Hockney works to be recreated above Saltaire by drones next week
The free event will be held in Robert’s Park next Friday
DAVID Hockney’s most famous works will be recreated in the skies above Saltaire as part of a spectacular drone display next week.
On Friday November 14 the free event will be held in Robert’s Park at 5.30pm as part of Bradford’s City of Culture celebrations.
Work by the acclaimed artist is on display in nearby Salts Mill, and for this event some of the Bradfordian legend’s artwork will be brought to life by over 600 illuminated drones hovering above the crowds.
Works from across Hockney’s career – from his vibrant Californian pool scenes to his bright landscape paintings of the Yorkshire countryside, will be recreated as part of the event.
Having embraced the latest digital technology in his work for many years, this is the first time the artist’s works will be presented using drones.
Called Painting The Sky, the event is produced by pioneering drone light show company SKYMAGIC who have created projects for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the King’s Coronation Concert, Coachella, and celebrations across the globe.
Hockney was born in Bradford in 1937 and attended Bradford Grammar School before studying at Bradford School of Art in the city centre from 1953 – 1957.
He has always embraced using new technology to create his art, from experimenting with Polaroid cameras in the 1980s and his iPad drawings of the Yorkshire countryside and the arrival of spring in Normandy, to his recent immersive exhibition Bigger & Closer (not smaller and further away), which used giant state-of-the-art multimedia projections to present a journey through sixty years of his art.
Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001, Saltaire was created as a model village by Victorian industrialist Sit Titus Salt.
At the heart of the village is the Grade II* listed former textile mill Salts Mill, now home to one of the largest permanent collections of works by David Hockney, including the current exhibition 20 Flowers for 2025 and Some Bigger Pictures featuring 20 iPad flower paintings alongside large-scale works, open until January 4.
Painting the Sky will take place in the open air, so people planning to attend have been advised to dress appropriately for the weather.
Roberts Park will likely be busy for the event so people have been advised to arrive in plenty of time. The show itself will last approximately 10 minutes.