The Singing Sculpture

Gilbert and George “The Singing Sculpture” 1969

They wanted to introduce themselves to the world as artists and felt that The Singing Sculpture was the ideal form to do that. What they did was sing on a rotating platform for eight straight hours covered in bronze paint in fitted suits. Gilbert and George then sang along to Flanagan and Allen’s music-hall staple. Every time the tape ended, one of them would get off the platform and restart it. They wanted to make themselves “the center of their art” (video above). They essentially looked like robots from their stiff movements and metallic paint.

            I think that they explore the subject of the line between life and art. They look like robots but they are still human and they are a spectacle for people to watch. This allows them to bring the two ideas of life and art together. When I was watching the video of them, the audience in the gallery room seemed like they were mesmerized by performance. I feel like because the audience was mesmerized they were successful with their piece because they got their attention for such a long time. I think the gallery space they were in was successful as well because it emphasized them as a piece of art and not just a show.