Gilbert and George: Art, Identity, and Urban Society

Gilbert & George are a British artist duo, born in 1943 and 1942 respectively, working across performance art, photography, and mixed media, known for their collaborative practice and distinctive visual identity.

They first emerged as “living sculptures,” incorporating their own presence as a central component of their work, often appearing together in formal suits as part of their artistic persona. Since the early 1970s, they have developed large-scale photographic “picture works,” combining staged imagery, bold graphic composition, and text.

Their practice frequently engages with themes drawn from urban life, social tension, identity, and contemporary morality, often presenting provocative and densely layered visual narratives. By placing themselves within their own work, they collapse the boundary between artist and artwork, creating a consistent performative framework that runs throughout their career.

Gilbert & George Thirteen Earthly Pictures Baronian, Knokke Heist 2021

Gilbert & GeorgeJack Freak Pictures 2009

KEY WORKS: Singers, 1970 (London: Tate Collection); United (Fabric Painting), 1970 (Frankfurt: Städel Museum); The Dirty Words Pictures, 1977 (New York: Dia Beacon)