Lehmann Maupin will present NEW NORMAL PICTURES, an exhibition of new work by the iconic London-based duo Gilbert & George. The exhibition marks the artists’ seventh with the gallery and the debut of NEW NORMAL PICTURES in New York. This new series fully embodies the tenor of contemporary life, best described through the old punk adage “the day the world turned Day-Glo,” with works rendered in an acidic color palette and with almost post-apocalyptic flare. Begun before the onset of the global pandemic and crystallized during the Covid-19 lockdowns in England, NEW NORMAL PICTURES reflects the reality of the world we live in today, from the endless refuse and litter of post-industrial life to the moments of sublime human connection and humor that can be found in even the darkest of times.

For over 50 years, Gilbert & George have lived and worked together in London’s East End, subsuming their individual identities into a singular artistic persona. The neighborhood has served as both the backdrop of and subject matter for their art, bearing witness to the shifting sociopolitical and urban conditions of the area over many decades. Through imagery specific to London and the East End in particular, Gilbert & George create pictures that function as both a portrait and love letter to their city―and often reflect larger universal concerns. The works in NEW NORMAL PICTURES bring the uncanny to life, where brute realism is infused with the hallucinatory quality of dreams. Each picture is simultaneously too dark yet too bright, and the tonal contrasts seem to be at war with one another, with little to soften the bleak, urban other-worldliness of the compositions. By depicting precarious (often seemingly absurd) image-subject relationships, the artists create a discordant tone that heightens the overarching sense of drama, dark humor, and intrigue.