Dive beneath the surface of David Hockney's iconic swimming pools in MODO's submersive summer exhibition with memoriam media room.

BENEATH THE SURFACE: DAVID HOCKNEY

MODO presents Beneath the Surface, a major summer exhibition celebrating the life and work of David Hockney through his iconic swimming pool images, while exploring the enduring questions of perception, perspective, and ways of seeing that defined his career.

Admission is now free. Visitors are welcome to visit during gallery opening hours. Please note we are closed Wednesdays, and take 30 minutes for lunch everyday. You are welcome to call ahead to let us know when you are palnning to attend. Visitors are warmly encouraged to make a voluntary donation to Art & Culture Education CIC (ACE CIC) on arrival. Every donation helps support the charity's work advocating for creativity, visual thinking and access to arts education.

Running until 31st August in Cambridge, the exhibition places Hockney's iconic swimming pool works at the centre of a new immersive and interactive gallery experience.

Alongside The Arrival of Spring in Normandy, visitors will encounter a playful and contemporary environment inspired by one of the most recognisable themes within Hockney's practice. Through installation, atmosphere and unexpected moments of discovery, Beneath the Surface invites visitors to look again at works that have become part of our collective visual culture.

"David Hockney spent a lifetime encouraging us to look more closely at the world around us. Beneath the Surface is an invitation to do exactly that. We hope visitors leave not only having enjoyed the work, but having discovered something new in the act of looking itself."

— Sally Clark, The Hockney Gallery Ltd, (MODO/Pentimento/Art & Culture Education C.I.C)

As part of the exhibition, MODO's Media Room will present In Memoriam, a short film reflecting on David Hockney's life, influence, and enduring contribution to the way we see the world. Presented alongside the exhibition, the film offers a moment to pause, reflect, and consider the questions that remained central to Hockney's work throughout his life: how we look, how we perceive, and how meaning is created through seeing.

As MODO is a commercial gallery, some of the original works featured in the exhibition have now been acquired by collectors and are beginning to leave the gallery as they are prepared for delivery. The display will therefore naturally evolve over the coming weeks.

Visitors will continue to experience the immersive swimming pool installation, Media Room featuring In Memoriam, and The Arrival of Spring in Normandy panoramic installation, alongside a changing selection of Hockney works.

Developed by the team at MODO in collaboration with ACE CIC, the exhibition continues the gallery's commitment to creating accessible, thought-provoking experiences around art, perception, and contemporary culture.

Upon Arrival

A slower pace.

A different rhythm.

The building itself becomes part of the experience; sound, light, shadow, stillness.

Visitors enter in small, staggered groups, allowing space to adjust, observe, and settle.

The splash is not an ending.

It is the beginning of seeing differently.

The Media Room

A moment to pause.

To sit.

To allow the noise of the outside world to recede.

Here, a short film explores the stories, ideas, and questions beneath Hockney's celebrated swimming pool works, alongside In Memoriam, a reflection on the life, work, and enduring influence of David Hockney.

Before You Leave

Take a moment.

What changed between entering the gallery and now?

There is no right answer.

Only another way of seeing.

Created by MODO in collaboration with ACE CIC.

"David Hockney spent a lifetime encouraging us to look more closely at the world around us. Beneath the Surface is an invitation to do exactly that. We hope visitors leave not only having enjoyed the work, but having discovered something new in the act of looking itself."

— Sally Clark, Founder & Curator, The Hockney Gallery Ltd, (MODO/Pentimento/Art & Culture Education C.I.C)

Instagram: @nowmodo

Description supplied by the event organiser.