Gilbert & George : Works From a Private Collection

6 Oct-6 Nov 2020

Overview

Ben Brown Fine Arts is thrilled to present an extraordinary group of pictures by famed British artists Gilbert & George at the London gallery, exhibited together for the first time from a prominent private collection. After meeting at Saint Martin's School of Art in London in 1967, Gilbert & George have been creating art together ever since, fully integrating all aspects of their lives into their art, making themselves 'living sculptures'. They reflect upon their revelation to create together over 50 years ago, "Art and life became one, and we were the messengers of a new vision. At that moment that we decided we are art and life, every conversation with people became art, and still is." Gilbert & George's early art centered around Living Sculptures and evolved into video, drawing, and picture making, typically inserting themselves into their art. They take an anti-elitist stance to art and embrace the credo "Art for All", as their art confront issues of social injustices, urban turmoil, politics, sex, religion, racism, patriotism and mortality. The East End of London - where they have been firmly rooted since 1967 and can be seen strolling the streets in their suits as they lead an ascetic lifestyle - serves as a filter and subject matter for much of their art. Gilbert & George are most renowned for their large-scale artworks, collectively known as "The Pictures". In the 1970s they began creating pictures of black and white images, soon arranging them into grid-like structures; by 1974 they incorporated red into their pictures; in the 1980s they introduced other bright colours into their repertoire and adopted a more stylized and graphic appearance in their pictures; and by the beginning of the 21st century fully embraced digital technology in their creativity.