In the half century that they have lived and created art together as Living Sculptures, embarked on a visionary journey through the modern world, always together and always alone, Gilbert & George have created fiercely singular Anti-Art that is poetic, primal and emotionally driven. BRAFA is proud to welcome them as guest of honour of its 2019 edition
What Is Gilbert & George?
Gilbert and George are two men who together are one artist: Gilbert & George.
The vision of Gilbert & George is their art, of which they are the embodiment. Therefore Gilbert & George are the art of Gilbert & George.
The art of Gilbert & George is based upon feelings rather than intellect. Gilbert & George are a total modern independent visionary artist, alone.
The vision of Gilbert & George is firstly their singular and particular way of seeing, experiencing and celebrating life.
The vision of Gilbert & George is also and simultaneously their way of seeing and making art. The inspiration and subject of the art of Gilbert & George is modern life.
The life of Gilbert & George is art.
Gilbert & George, with the viewer, explore and test their feelings in their art.
On walks around their home in the East End of London, Gilbert & George see the modern human condition. Acceleration, religion, politics, business, dullness, leisure, celebration, violence, money, history, poverty, age, sex, work, hope, newness, sickness, desire, intoxication, beauty, dereliction, love, despair; the radicalized world; the virtual world. They see the daily routines and feelings of their fellow citizens, from all backgrounds: the fast modern multi-cultural and multi-technological world. Office workers and junkies. They see the spectrum of human behaviour.
Gilbert & George observe the constantly changing life of the city the way one might observe the weather, or study the ceaseless current of a vast river.
The vision of Gilbert & George is committed to raw realism, but is also deeply romantic: finding heightened or disturbed emotion in ordinary things, in a way that renders the subjects of their art extraordinary and richly atmospheric; individual, yet connected by common feelings.
The vision of Gilbert & George derives from the union of lucidity and heightened feeling; their art from the balance of control and loss of control.
“Michael Bracewell, 2017”
