Phone Art
15th June 2026
In memory of David Hockney, who sadly passed away a few days ago, I decided to paint using the Artrage app on my iPhone. It was a clumsy experience using my finger as a brush on a tiny 6cm square surface but as I progressed I began to enjoy the process. I completed six paintings, starting with a lamp in the living room. The next day I painted a scene in a local field and then two boats on Back Beach. Each took about 10-15 minutes.
Back home I recreated the boat scenes from the photo references. With more time I paid closer attention to the shapes, adjusting the brush size and expanding the canvas. This gave me more control and a tighter result but perhaps at the cost of spontaneity.
Overall, it was a fun and enjoyable exercise that I’ll definitely repeat. It serves as a reminder that I have this art tool in my pocket every day – easy to set up and quick to use. It’s just a matter of doing it. David Hockney understood this and was an inspiration and leader in many fields of art including phone art. RIP.
Back home I recreated the boat scenes from the photo references. With more time I paid closer attention to the shapes, adjusting the brush size and expanding the canvas. This gave me more control and a tighter result but perhaps at the cost of spontaneity.
Overall, it was a fun and enjoyable exercise that I’ll definitely repeat. It serves as a reminder that I have this art tool in my pocket every day – easy to set up and quick to use. It’s just a matter of doing it. David Hockney understood this and was an inspiration and leader in many fields of art including phone art. RIP.