Abbey mourns David Hockney

In 2018, David Hockney designed The Queen’s Window, a vibrant stained-glass window in the Abbey’s north transept.

Hockney's only work in stained glass, the window was commissioned to celebrate the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. It was designed on an iPad and uses Hockney's distinct colour palette of yellow, red, blue, pink, orange and green.

The rural scene, featuring hawthorn blossom, was chosen to reflect the Queen's deep love of the countryside. On summer evenings, the light from the window floods the transept, bathing it in a beautiful kaleidoscope of colour.

The Dean of Westminster, The Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle KCVO MBE said:

'David Hockney's restless eye and eager enthusiasm for pastures new has left us with an extraordinary legacy that is rich and various and yet also unmistakably his.

The window he created for the north transept lets in light that arrives with attitude and even humour, painting the statue of Gladstone in shifting shades throughout the summer months. Hockney has left his mark here and we will long remember a great and very personal genius.'

Further reading

The Queen's Window