Photographs have been much in the news. The most powerful government in the world has been badly shaken by one portfolio of shots of American soldiers mistreating Iraqi prisoners. Meanwhile, one of the most prominent figures on Fleet Street has been blown right out of his editorial chair by another set of British soldiers in Iraq, because they turned out to be a hoax. All of this is of considerable interest to one of Britain's most celebrated artists, David Hockney, who has spent half a lifetime pondering on the veracity of the camera.
The other day I went to see the new video portrait of David Beckham asleep by Sam Taylor-Wood at the National Portrait Gallery. But it's just an hour's worth of observation of the subject. You don't see layer upon layer of scrutiny. The portrait of me by Lucian Freud that is on show around the corner took 120 hours — and there you do see those layers. That's why it's infinitely more interesting.
