CONTACTAbout UsCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2025 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
Scroll To Top
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Forty years ago, Gilbert Proesch met George Passmore in a sculpture course at St. Martin's School of Art in London, and it was love at first sight. Both figuratively and literally, they have been inseparable ever since. The anniversary of this fateful meeting of the artist collectively known as Gilbert & George is celebrated in a new, massive two-volume set from Aperture and Tate Publishing. Gilbert & George: The Complete Pictures, 1971-2005 extensively chronicles their journey from oddball renegades to beloved members of the art establishment.
Gilbert & George's signature style coalesced in large, brightly colored photo montages, often backlit to resemble stained glass and incorporating button-pushing symbols (swastikas, crucifixes, roses, flags) and provocative text (cock, scum, fucked up). As self-described living sculptures, they insist they live their whole lives as art; they're prone to rude jokes, are rarely seen dressed in anything but matching suits or apart from one another, and keep slavishly to a peculiar daily schedule.
With their taboo subject matter encompassing religion, race, nationalism, urbanity, biology, and, of course, sex, Gilbert & George have often drawn the ire of some art critics who regard them as exhibitionist jokesters, but the pair seem to delight in the controversy. Beginning in the 1980s their deliberately provocative work took on gay issues: They appeared nude in front of comically giant turds in The Naked Shit Pictures and depicted microscopic images of semen, blood, saliva, and urine in response to the AIDS crisis. Though many members of the art establishment have continued to deride them, the Tate Modern in London recently unveiled its largest retrospective of any artist to date, Gilbert & George: Major Exhibition. The exhibit's next stops: Munich, Turin, San Francisco, Milwaukee, and Brooklyn. Given the duos taste for confrontation, one can only guess theyre praying for harsh reviews.
Watch Now: Pride Today
Latest Stories
My son spoke up on the playground–now it's my turn not to freeze
June 10 2025 6:00 AM
And that's what you missed: Every 'Glee' star who's won a Tony Award
June 10 2025 12:40 AM
Khalid cries during his first-ever Pride show, thanks fans for support
June 09 2025 4:40 PM
Trans actress Jen Richards says she was hit by rubber bullet at LA anti-ICE protests
June 09 2025 3:46 PM
Tony Awards 2025: Every LGBTQ+ winner and iconic performance
June 09 2025 11:41 AM
Cole Escola makes Tony history with acting win, thanks Grindr connection
June 09 2025 10:33 AM
Jennifer Lopez raises voice for LGBTQ+ 'Freedom' at WorldPride DC
June 08 2025 7:59 PM
Did Kerri Colby just reveal how long 'Drag Race All Stars 10' filmed each bracket?
June 07 2025 5:25 PM
Charles Blow: Coming out later in life is a 'restoration of the soul'
June 06 2025 7:13 PM
These photos prove The Ritz Bar and Lounge is back and better than ever
June 06 2025 6:00 PM
Fletcher fell in love with a 'Boy,' so why is she so sad about it?
June 06 2025 5:38 PM
Symone is ready to get louder and gayer at WorldPride
June 06 2025 3:47 PM