ANDREW GILBERT, GB

Emperor Andrew Wants You - God Save the Zulu Queen, 2015

Watercolor, Acrylic and Fineliner
48 x 68 cm | 18.9 x 26.77 in

The artist examines the representations of exotic cliches, and propaganda techniques used to demonize the eternal foreign Other. In doing so he questions who is really “primitive” and critiques the Western Historical narrative and the contemporary nostalgia for Empire. All of this is combined with absurdist humor and often grotesque violence, tracing parallels between the conquests of 19th century empires and the military occupations of our days.

Andrew Emperor of Africa, the artist's alter ego, urges his populations to join the army, emphasizing the brutality that has characterized African colonial battles.

Exhibitions:
ANDREW GILBERT | JARMILA MITRÍKOVÁ & DÁVID DEMJANOVIČ | UMAR RASHID (FROHAWK TWO FEATHERS), The Fate of Empires, Studio d’Arte Raffaelli + Cellar Contemporary, Trento, 2019

Published on: 
ANDREW GILBERT | JARMILA MITRÍKOVÁ & DÁVID DEMJANOVIČ | UMAR RASHID (FROHAWK TWO FEATHERS), The Fate of Empires, Studio d’Arte Raffaelli + Cellar Contemporary, Trento 2019, p. 19

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