How does this artwork elucidate its Background?
Hockney moved from England to California in 1964, drawn by its sleek modernist aesthetic and warm Mediterranean climate. In 1966, while teaching at UCLA, Hockney met the American art student Peter Schlesinger.  The two became lovers, and Hockney started painting a series of pool pictures, often featuring Schlesinger. A few of these, such as Peter Getting Out of Nick's Pool (1966), A Bigger Splash (1967) and Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) (1972), later achieved iconic status.  On 15 November 2018, the latter set a world record for the most expensive work of art ever sold at auction by a living artist.
Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) A Bigger Splash Mediterranean climate Peter Schlesinger UCLA