Gilbert & George

The Great Exhibition

9.2 2019 – 12.5 2019

Stockholm

Gilbert & George are two men who together are one artist. For more than five decades they have been creating art that challenges the conventions of art and society with a blatant disregard for any notions of “good taste”. The Great Exhibition treats you to a unique artistic vision, with over fifty pictures selected by Gilbert & George.

As the most iconic double of the art world, dressed in near-matching and impeccably well-pressed suits, Gilbert & George have resided in the same London East End neighbourhood since the 1960s. Fearless and straight to the point, their art has the power to unsettle the viewer.

Gilbert & George – an indivisible artistic entity

Ever since they met at Saint Martin’s School of Art, Gilbert (born in the Dolomites, Italy, in 1943) and George (born in Devon, UK, in 1942) have walked their own path. Being both subjects and objects of their art, they are indisputably an indivisible artistic entity and have dedicated their life to art. By committing themselves to a discipline as rigorous as it is creative, keeping their life at their home and East End studio to simple classless routines, they have made room for total creative madness.

Film introduction Gilbert & George

In the film Gilbert & George tell us about their art and take us on one of their legendary walks through a neighbourhood that has provided material for their art for more than 50 years. We met again in Stockholm for a walk through the finished exhibition at Moderna Museet.

Comedy, tragedy, desperation, fearlessness and sadness

From floor to ceiling the exhibition space is filled with pictures that are at once thrilling and frightening, grotesque and austere, surreal and symbolic. The pictures almost always portray the artists themselves, often gazing directly at the viewer. Sex, money, race, and religion are among subjects of their art, which succeeds in combining happiness and sadness.

Punk rockers and hipsters, Morris dance and bombs, autumn leaves and classifieds of all kinds – Gilbert & George probe the world around us with piercing eyes. “The Great Exhibition” is as democratic, generous and extravagant as its creators. Gilbert & George proclaim “art for all”.

Installation view ”Gilbert & George: The Great Exhibition” Moderna Museet 2019. Photo: Åsa Lundén/Moderna Museet

Curators: Hans Ulrich Obrist and Daniel Birnbaum

Video in the Mini Cinema

During the exhibition period two early video works by Gilbert & George are shown in the Mini Cinema on floor 2.

Gordon’s Makes us Drunk (Gordons gör oss fulla), 1972

Video, 20 min

Over the music by Elgar and Greig, the voice of George can be heard intoning the words “Gordon’s makes us drunk,” “Gordon’s makes us drunk.” Gilbert & George slowly sip, and the voice goes on to repeat “Gordon’s makes us very drunk,” and toward the end of the video, “Gordon’s makes us very, very, drunk”. Gin and Tonic was Gilbert & George’s favorite drink in the early ‘70s and Gordon’s was their pick, according to them it was “the best”. Brattishness is both celebrated and parodied in this early work where the artists get drunk in a way that is ‘not a pleasure, but a duty to perform.’

The Singing Sculpture (Den sjungande skulpturen), 1992

Film, 11 min

In this film by Philip Haas, Gilbert & George present The Singing Sculpture in New York in 1991. The piece was first shown in London in 1969 shortly after the artists happened upon a recording of “Underneath the Arches” by Flanagan and Allen. It was as singing sculptures that Gilbert & George first made their mark. It is neither performance nor happening but simply a singing sculpture, and a part of the art of Gilbert & George.

Art adventure, from age 4

An art adventure is a family tour for kids and adults to do on their own. In the exhibition, you will find gigantic, colourful pictures made up of several smaller parts. Look at the images through the eyes of Gilbert & George and see if you can find the details in the works of art. Ask the staff at the information desk on floor 4 how to get started. From age 4 (accompanied by an adult).

Catalogue

The richly illustrated exhibition catalogue will feature five interviews with Gilbert & George by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Daniel Birnbaum, one for each decade of their practice. 460 pages.

Buy the catalogue
catalogue cover