The Banners: Gilbert & George, White Cube
Returning to the White Cube: Gilbert and George present 'BANNERS'
Gilbert and George 2015 Exhibition White Cube Bermondsey
Chronic provocateurs Gilbert & George are back with another potty-mouthed exhibition.
This White Cube Bermondsey show BANNERS is the latest from the artistic duo, who have been gleefully offending the masses together since 1967.
The exhibition is made up of 30 slogans daubed on white paper, which assert 'F*CK THE PLANET', 'BURN THAT BOOK', 'F*CK THE TEACHERS', 'FELLATIO FOR ALL' , 'MAKE CUNNILINGUS COMPULSORY', 'GOD SAVE THE QUEEN' and the like. In typical fashion, Gilbert and George are trying to offend both the right and the left. To a liberal contemporary consumer, a pro-monarchist stance is perhaps more shocking than the suggestion that everyone deserves fellatio.
Maybe this exhibition will surprise us. But we can't see how it's is much different than their last several, or indeed their first - The Dirty Word Pictures, in 1977.
All the duo have ever done, it seems, is to hurl visual and verbal grenades into the salons of polite opinion. In the 1980s they became highly controversial and were accused of racism and fascism. Using words like ‘Paki’, ‘wanker’ and ‘c*nt’ on their artworks probably didn’t help their case – nor did their 1981 film The World of Gilbert and George, with its observations of the East End’s drunks, skinheads and St George’s flags. Then came the ‘Naked Shit’ pictures which included photographs of their faeces.
If this latest attempt to offend fails to tempt you, we understand. A more interesting spectacle might be to watch the besuited duo marching through their native Spitalfields towards the Turkish restaurant they dine at nightly.
This White Cube Bermondsey show BANNERS is the latest from the artistic duo, who have been gleefully offending the masses together since 1967.
The exhibition is made up of 30 slogans daubed on white paper, which assert 'F*CK THE PLANET', 'BURN THAT BOOK', 'F*CK THE TEACHERS', 'FELLATIO FOR ALL' , 'MAKE CUNNILINGUS COMPULSORY', 'GOD SAVE THE QUEEN' and the like. In typical fashion, Gilbert and George are trying to offend both the right and the left. To a liberal contemporary consumer, a pro-monarchist stance is perhaps more shocking than the suggestion that everyone deserves fellatio.
Maybe this exhibition will surprise us. But we can't see how it's is much different than their last several, or indeed their first - The Dirty Word Pictures, in 1977.
All the duo have ever done, it seems, is to hurl visual and verbal grenades into the salons of polite opinion. In the 1980s they became highly controversial and were accused of racism and fascism. Using words like ‘Paki’, ‘wanker’ and ‘c*nt’ on their artworks probably didn’t help their case – nor did their 1981 film The World of Gilbert and George, with its observations of the East End’s drunks, skinheads and St George’s flags. Then came the ‘Naked Shit’ pictures which included photographs of their faeces.
If this latest attempt to offend fails to tempt you, we understand. A more interesting spectacle might be to watch the besuited duo marching through their native Spitalfields towards the Turkish restaurant they dine at nightly.
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| What | The Banners: Gilbert & George, White Cube |
| Where | White Cube Bermondsey, 144-152 Bermondsey Street , London, SE1 3TQ | MAP |
| Nearest tube | London Bridge (underground) |
| When |
24 Nov 15 – 24 Jan 16, Tuesday to Saturday, 10am – 6pm and Sunday, 12 – 6pm. |
| Price | £Free |
| Website | Click here for more information |