Gilbert & George: The Meaning of the Earth

The Meaning of the Earth describes an almost unknown revolution that took place in London the 1970s. A revolution where a bloody power struggle raged for many years before its decisive battle ended with a tremendous sacrifice. But no lives were lost in this revolution, just as it was unmarked by rebellious pathos and public calls to violence. Nor did it intervene in contemporary society. Instead it toppled a regime internalised in western individuals. It led to the death of the decrepit and irretrievably dialectically animated spirit that had set the historical revolutions in motion, inspired them and drove them on. It ended too the Christian-influenced and increasingly secular salvation history, and opened a new evolutionary chapter. Its two revolutionaries, Gilbert & George, emerge not unscathed but nonetheless victorious from this inner power struggle. Wolf Jahn''s text tells of their world revolution of the soul in the twentieth century and its fruitful results in the form of a new creation and anthropogenesis.

Autorentext

Born in Stuttgart in 1955, Wolf Jahn is a freelance writer. Over the past 40 years, Wolf Jahn has written extensively about the works of Gilbert & George and is the author of The Art of Gilbert & George (Thames & Hudson, 1989).

Gilbert & George began creating art together in 1967 when they met at Central St Martins School of Art, and from the beginning – in their films and LIVING SCULPTURE performances – they have appeared as figures in their own art. The 'two men, one artist' believe that everything is potential subject matter for art. They address social issues and taboos, challenging what might be considered 'good taste'. Implicit in their art is the idea that an artist’s sacrifice and personal investment is a necessary condition of art. The backdrop and inspiration for much of their art is the East End of London where Gilbert & George have lived and created art for nearly 50 years. From street signs to Ginkgo trees, from chewing gum stains on the pavements to vistas of urban grandeur and decay, their work is both an ongoing portrait of a city and a reflection on the human condition. Gilbert & George confront many of the fundamental issues of existence: sex, religion, corruption, violence, hope, fear, addiction and death.

Klappentext

The Meaning of the Earth offers a retrospective on the lives and work of the relentlessly controversial artists, placing them within the context of twentieth century British culture. Wolf Jahn tells the story of how Gilbert & George found their identity in opposition to pervasive ideas around social conformity and religion after meeting in 1967.***

• The artists staged an internal revolution, mining their psyches to create visionary and unwaveringly modern art. The ‘two people but one artist’ ask the questions that gnaw at us all: ‘Where do we come from?’, ‘Who are we?’ and ‘Where are we going?’ The book meditates on the artists’ role in this century, connecting their beginnings as Living Sculptures to their pictorial work of today.*
  The Meaning of the Earth *is a continuation of Jahn’s 1989 work, The Art of Gilbert & George. The author writes a playful philosophical interrogation of Gilbert & George’s work that truly grasps its cosmic scale.

  Zusammenfassung
  The Meaning of the Earth offers a retrospective on the work and lives of the relentlessly controversial artists Gilbert & George, connecting their beginnings as Living Sculptures to their pictorial work of today.

  As Living Sculptures, Gilbert & George offered two pieces of advice to their live audiences every morning: 'Sit on the edge of your bed and think, What do I want to say to the world today?' and 'Fuck the teachers!'

  The Meaning of the Earth offers a retrospective on the lives and work of the relentlessly controversial artists, placing them within the context of twentieth century British culture. Wolf Jahn tells the story of how Gilbert & George found their identity in opposition to pervasive ideas around social conformity and religion after meeting in 1967.

  The artists staged an internal revolution, mining their psyches to create visionary and unwaveringly modern art. The 'two people but one artist' ask the questions that gnaw at us all: 'Where do we come from?', 'Who are we?' and 'Where are we going?' The book meditates on the artists' role in this century, connecting their beginnings as Living Sculptures to their pictorial work of today.

  The Meaning of the Earth is a continuation of Jahn's 1989 work, The Art of Gilbert & George. The author writes a playful philosophical interrogation of Gilbert & George's work that truly grasps its cosmic scale.

  Inhalt

  Foreward 7 Revolution After Revolution Chapter one 9 Meditation on Three Words Chapter two 49 Reversed Aceticism Chapter three 69 Go to Hell Chapter four 95 Kill Chapter five 133 New Genesis Chapter six 203 Below Chapter seven 243 Be Human Chapter eight 279 Paths and How to Take Them Chapter nine 311 The Meaning of the Earth Chapter ten 343 What we Are Chapter eleven 379 Signatura Crucis Chapter twelve 403 Obsessions Chapter thirteen 419 The Wild Donkey, the False Promise, Leviathan and Judgement Day Chapter fourteen 451 Dual Nature Chapter fifteen 483 Monarchia Chapter sixteen 543 Continents of Being epilogue 565 Endnotes 567 Bibliography 583