Gilbert & George

"Gilbert and George are the picture of British gentility. Scratch the surface, though, and a host of demons ooze out." —Associated Press

Gilbert and George, two sculptors who met in college, have been creating work for the last forty years that, according to TimeOut London, "tap into public opinion at just the right time." Confronting the punk anger and racial tensions of the '70s to consumer capitalism in the '80s to the terrorism fears of today, the artists' brightly colored photomontages, though comprised of images gathered within walking distance of the artists' home on London's East Side, are raw examinations of human experience. Gilbert & George features nearly 100 works that trace the stylistic and emotional development of the artists—now icons as the central figures in their art. The picture of British gentility in their dapper tweed suits, Gilbert and George nonetheless wanted to break free of the narrow confines of the art world and communicate beyond those limits, adopting the motto: "art for all." This exhibition, described by the Associated Press as "bold and racy," was organized by the Tate Modern and is their largest retrospective of any artist to date.

A Tate Modern, London exhibition in association with the Milwaukee Art Museum. The exhibition is curated by Jan Debbaut and Ben Borthwick, and coordinated at the Milwaukee Art Museum by Chief Curator Joe Ketner.

Gilbert & George