David Hockney
(1964)

When Hockney went to Los Angeles in 1964, he was particularly fascinated by the use of water for irrigation and recreation in the semi-arid environment. He delighted in experimenting with various methods of depicting drops and sprays of water, attracted by the 'idea of painting moving water in a very slow and careful manner' (Stangos, p.99). He painted swimming pools and lawn sprinklers, but was equally intrigued by showers.
This painting includes some of the artist's favourite themes: moving water, the curtain, domestic scenes and homoerotic imagery. The curtain motif ( in particular, its flatness and similarities to a painting) had interested Hockney for several years. The source for the figure is a photograph taken by the Athletic Model Guild, which specialised in male nudes; the figure also has similarities to several images in Physique Pictorial. Hockney had intended from the beginning to add the foreground plant but, having difficulty with the feet, he bent the leaves to cover them. He began painting in acrylic during this first visit to Los Angeles, when colour rather than texture was his main concern.

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/hockney-man-in-shower-in-beverly-hills-t03074
Nikos Stangos (ed.), David Hockney by David Hockney, London 1976

Man in Shower in Beverly Hills
1964
Acrylic paint on canvas
167 x 167 cm
Tate, London
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/hockney-man-in-shower-in-beverly-hills-t03074