A biography of the artists Gilbert and George. They have marketed their work with single-mindedness since they appeared together in the late 1960s. Their technique "D" taking thousands of photographs, assembling a theme in panels and dyeing them in vivid colours, is unequalled. Their relationship appears odd to the outsider, but is undeniably a great love story. Their appearance (identical three-buttoned suits) has become their trademark.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
This affectionate, almost loving portrait of two of Britain's most distinguished and controversial artists is made all the more poignant by the fact that the biographer, art journalist and author Daniel Farson, died while writing it. Being about Gilbert & George, the salacious material is fairly unorthodox--the most shocking revelation is that George married as a young man and has two children--and for the most part Farson is almost apologetic about any intrusion into Proesch and Passmore's (their surnames) private lives. The first half of the book takes us from their childhoods in the Dolomites and Tiverton via their meeting at St. Martin's School of Art in the late 1960s to their current status as art icons. The second half sees Farson following them around--Moscow, Shanghai, Barnstable--as they exhibit around the world. Farson wisely highlights his admiration at the outset, and the reader is clear that this is no hatchet job. That said, he covers both the art and the lives with a straightforward professionalism that is never less than absorbing. This book is a fine tribute to Gilbert & George; equally, their closing words are a fine tribute to Farson: "On 27 November our dear Daniel died, not knowing how much we loved him (though we told him often enough)." --Nick Wroe
About the Author
Born in 1927, Daniel Farson was the author of bestsellers including Jack the Ripper, The Man Who Wrote Dracula and Never A Normal Man. He was a TV reporter, photographer, biographer and art critic.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ordinary people who produce extraordinary things,
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This review is from: Gilbert and George: A Portrait (Hardcover)
The best account of the duo's rise to fame, infamy and institutionalisation that you can buy, this is a warm-hearted biography of their life and work up until the mid-90s. The revelation that George was once married and led a relatively normal family life does nothing to dispel the suspicion that the pair remove their suits over the weekend and retire to the countryside anonymously. Certainly, the appear to have spent most of the 1970s being drunken party animals. It's amusing to listen to lots of critics initially finding them amusing, then alarming, then deeply moving, then warm and lovable, according to critical fashion. As with their art, the book has a melancholic air to it, as the author sadly passed away shortly before completion (the book stops rather abruptly and is finished with some travelogue essays on their exhibitions abroad). The closing observation by the pair that Farson did not realise how much they liked him is deeply sad. It's big and thick and well-written, and there is a nice selection of photographs. Best of all, you can order it from Amazon.co.uk for considerably less money than it costs to buy it here!
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