The Easel

7th October 2025

Gilbert & George review, 21st Century Pictures: Hayward Gallery exhibition is quite hectically of the moment

Mark Hudson | The Independent | 6th October 2025

As art students Gilbert and George sang pre-war songs, their faces painted bronze. Since then their endlessly provocative work has addressed sex, money, race, the tabloids and (particularly) religion. They have become, says a writer, the “scabrous chroniclers of London in the tradition of Hogarth”. Some think their act has become formulaic but it is still “quite hectically of the moment.” A curator discusses some of their works here.

Theatre Picasso review, Tate Modern – Familiar works transformed by a bold, atmospheric setting

Mark Hudson | The Independent | 15th September 2025

Are there new ways to exhibit Picasso? A London show tries, showing him in a theatrical setting, as if to focus on his love of play acting. One critic likes this approach, saying the show is “riveting, [giving the art] a jumpy energy.”. Other critics, though, are lukewarm.  “The exhibition mixes together a lot of chaotic ideas” is a common theme.  The above writer complains about the convoluted wall labels, admitting that it “isn’t quite the epic blockbuster we’d hoped”.

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