Gilbert and George.

Gilbert and George are performance artists, creators of photomontage, publishers and filmmakers. Gilbert (Proesch) was born in the Dolomites, Italy, in 1943. Studied at Wolkenstein School of Art, Hallein School of Art and Munich Academy of Art. George (Passmore) was born in Plymouth, Devon, in 1942. He studied at Dartington Adult Education Centre, at Dartington Hall College of Art and Oxford School of Art. They met when studying at St Martin’s School of Art in 1967.

From 1968 they showed work and were living sculptures, their first appearance being at Frank’s Sandwich Bar, London, in that year. Many other appearances included Robert Fraser Gallery, Nigel Greenwood Inc and at Robert Self and Anthony d’Offay Galleries. They also appeared several times at Whitechapel Art Gallery and at the Hayward Gallery, 1987, as well as widely abroad. In addition to featuring in films and videos, Gilbert and George produced works in edition and books such as Gilbert and George The Complete Pictures 1971-1985, in which their art philosophy was expounded, seeking “to speak across the barriers of knowledge directly to the People about their Life and not about their knowledge of art”.

A typical Gilbert and George performance was miming an old record of Underneath the Arches while wearing their formal suits and ties, their faces and hands bronzed. Arts Council and other major collections around the world hold their work. There was a 30-year retrospective at the Musee d’Art Moderne, Paris, in 1997.

The backdrop and inspiration for much of their art is the East End of London where Gilbert & George have lived and created art for nearly 50 years. From street signs to Ginkgo trees, from chewing gum stains on the pavements to vistas of urban grandeur and decay, their work is both an ongoing portrait of a city and a reflection on the human condition. Gilbert & George have confronted many of the fundamental issues of existence: sex, religion, corruption, violence, hope, fear, racial tension, patriotism, addiction and death.

‘Our subject matter is the world. It is pain. Pain. Just to hear the world turning is pain, isn’t it? Totally, every day, every second. Our inspiration is all those people alive today on the planet, the desert, the jungle, the cities. We are interested in the human person, the complexity of life.’

Solo Exhibitions Include:

Touring retrospective exhibition currently at Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt (2021) and previously at Kunsthalle Zurich, Switzerland (2020), Moderna Museet, Stockholm (2019), Astrup Fearnley Museum, Oslo (2019) and LUMA, Arles, France (2018)

• Casa Rusca Museum, Locarno (2020)

• Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris (2019)

• Helsinki Art Museum, Finland (2018)

• Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart, Australia (2015)

• The Museum of Modern Art, New York (2015)

• Centro de Arte Contemporáneo Málaga, Spain touring to Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb (2010)

• Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania (2008);

• Tate Modern, London touring to Haus der Kunst, Munich; Castello di Rivoli, Turin, Italy; De Young Museum, San Francisco, California; Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York and Milwaukee Art Museum, Wisconsin (2007–08)

• Serpentine Gallery, London (2002)

• Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (1996)

• Milwaukee Art Museum, Wisconsin touring to The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (1985)

• Whitechapel Gallery, London touring to Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam and Kunstverein Düsseldorf (1971)