Wednesday

Hockney Makes £2.6m Splash

One of British artist David Hockney's most famous works, The Splash, has been sold for £2.6m at Sotheby's in London. The painting, dating from 1966, had been in a private collection in California for the past 20 years. The piece, in Hockney's minimalist style, depicts the moment someone hits the water, diving into a swimming pool. The sale marks a record price for a Hockney work, beating the £1.9m set by A Neat Lawn six weeks ago. Hockney graduated from art school in 1962 and his move to Los Angeles four years later had a profound effect on his work. Last year, his painting Mr and Mrs Clark and Percy was shortlisted for the title of the greatest painting in Britain but was beaten by Turner's The Fighting Temeraire. Irish Art