Gilbert and George: A Portrait Book

This affectionate, almost loving, portrait of two of Britain's most distinguished and most controversial artists is made all the more poignant by that fact that the biographer, art journalist and author Daniel Farson, died while writing it. Being 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 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 Dan following them around--Moscow, Shanghai, Barnstable--as they exhibit around the world. Farson wisely highlights his admiration for them 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 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 WroeRead More