Andrew Gilbert

Born 1980, Edinburgh, Scotland

Andrew Gilbert plunges us into the heart of the excesses of the British empire’s colonial wars. This recurring and obsessive theme allows him to revisit with fantasy, irony, and ferocity, the memorable moments of the English military’s history. He recreates historic events with care, precisely recreating specific uniform details and the positions of battalions. But he lets his imagination run wild as he places himself as the hero of the stories he presents. But in these fables, Eros also isn’t far away…

Andrew Gilbert was born in 1980 in Edinburgh. From 1997 to 2002, he attended the University of Edinburgh and the Edinburgh College of Art. He has had numerous solo exhibitions across Europe, in particular in Berlin and in London. In 2011, the Galerie Polad-Hardouin organized his first exhibition in Paris. He has lived and worked in Berlin since 2002.

1997 - 2002: M.A: (Hons) Fine Art - University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh College of Art

Recent exhibitions

 2016

Exposition, Münich, gallery Sperling

Ulundi is Jerusalem, Andrew is Emperor, Brocoli is Holy, from 28 February to 17 April, , Lübeck, Gesellschaft Museum. 

Artist and Empire, November 2015 - April 2016, Tate Britain, London 

2015

Trophies of the Savages - Idols of Civilisation' Blank Projects , Cape Town, South Africa

'The Life of Baby Afghan Squirrel' SPERLING, Munich

'European Tribal War Idols, Waterloo 1815' Gallery Polad - Hardouin , Paris

"Je suis...Brocoli!" Jagla Ausstellungsraum , Koeln

'Andrew's Exotic and Erotic Massage Parlour' Sightfenster , Koeln

2014

'Fiore e Soldate' with M. Galliani , Studio d'arte Raffaelli, Trento

'Sacred Soil and Bloody Ground' Galerie Kai Erdmann, Hamburg

'Forte Comune 1914/2014' with Michelangelo Galliani , Forte Strino Military Museum , Italy

'Andrew Gilbert at Settlement Projects' Leith Late 14, Edinburgh

'The Glorious return of Emperor Andrew' Summerhall , Edinburgh 

2013

'Andrew's Glorious Army Crosses the Alps' Studio d'arte Raffaelli, Trento 

'The Battle of Blood River' Ten Haaf Projects, Amsterdam Andrew Gilbert and Akiyoshi Mishima' Nanzuka, Tokyo

'Les Maitres Fous - Starring Andrew and Emil Nolde' Gallery Polad Hardouin, Paris

'North European Primitivism - Andrew, Gislerbertus, Nolde, Rogier van der Weyden' Galerie Andreas Hoehne, Munich

2012 

‘Colonial Exhibition – Culloden 1746’ power galerie, Hamburg

‘The Sacred Ambush is full of the sound of parrots screaming’ (with Anna Parkina ) SVIT,Prague 

Solo Presentation, Power Galerie, NADA Art Cologne Solo Presentation, Ten Haaf Projects, NADA New York 

2011

‘Trophies of the Savages’ Galerie 207 , Prague

‘The Lost art of Convalescense’ with Lucy Stein, Gimpel Fils, London

‘Hallucinatory Mahdis and Aeons’ with David Tibet, nationalmuseum, Berlin

‘The Erotic Adventures of Andrew in the Sudan,1895’ Galerie Andreas Hoehne, Muenchen

‘Der Heiliger Krieg’ with Tomas Roubal, Kino Kytka, Prague

‘Austerlitz – The Fate of Empires’,Ten Haaf Projects,Amsterdam

‘Andrew Emperor of Africa’, Galerie Polad Hardouin, Paris

2010

‘Andrew’s death in Afghanistan, 1842’ Power Galerie, Hamburg

‘Veronika Landa and Andrew Gilbert’ MeetFactory International Centre for Contemporary Art, Prague

“Andrew’s honeymoon in India,1857” Gallery Kabinet T, Zlin, Czech Republic

“Cut out her eyes – Cut off his Penis” (with Lucy Stein), Forgotten Bar, Berlin

2009 

“The Zulu Queen stood as Jerusalem fell” , Ten Haaf Projects, Amsterdam 

2008 

“Black Magic White Power” , Galerie Andreas Hoehne, Munich 

“Fix Bayonets and Die like British Soldiers Die!” , Galerie Eva Bracke, Berlin

2007 

Solo Presentation, Galerie Eva Bracke, Jam Art Fair, Mallorca "To Wipe the Blade-Zulu", Galerie Eva Bracke, Berlin

2006

"Vezalay to Ulundi", Galerie Na Bydilku, Brno, Czech Republic

2005

"The Fall of the Pagan Idols", curated by Caroline Nathusius, kjubh Kunstverein, Köln 

"The Dance around the Golden Calves", galerie Antik, Berlin 

2004

"The Tempation of John Knox", Forever and a Day Buero, Berlin 

"Vezelay to Jerusalem", Galerie Na Bydilku, Brno, Czech Republic

2003

  "Deutsch Afrikanische Freundschaft", Autocenter, Berlin

"The False Miracles of Mohammed", Galerie Nomadenoase, Hamburg 

Group Exhibitions (selection): 

2015 'Artist and Empire' Tate Britain , London , England 

'European Tribal Wars' with D. Wood and S.Kaminiski , Bavarian Army Museum, Ingolstadt 

'State of Mankind' Draw a Line , Berlin 'Alptraum' Visual Voice Gallery , Montreal Canada

'Salon International de Bobanisme' Salon Boban Andjelkovic , Munich

'House of Pain' curated by Veit Loers , Galerie Petra Martinetz , Koeln

'Berlin Klondyke' Salon Dahlmann , Berlin 'Tales of Darkness' Sunaparanta , Goa centre for Arts, India

'Pigdogandmonkeyfestos' curated by S.Doyle and M.Mallinson, Phoenix Gallery, Exeter, England

'a Man walks in to a bar' me Collectors room , Berlin

'Alptraum' Salon de Liria, Goa, India

2014 

''VIII Bienale d'Arte Giovani' Museo d'Arte Moderna , Gazoldo degli Ippoliti

'3 Carrots - 1 Tea Pot - Biber, Braun, Gilbert' Salon Tom Biber, Berlin

'A man walks in to a bar' Mainsburg 'seemed like a good idea at the time' Sperling, Munich

'In Furs' Kuenstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin

'PigDogandMonkeyfestos' curated by S. Doyle and M. Mallinson, Airspace Gallery, Stoke on Trent, England

'Alptraum' UGM Maribor Art Gallery, Maribor, Slovenia 'Hauptstadt' Galerie Kai Erdmann, Berlin

'Half Devil Half Child' Blank Projects, Cape Town, South Africa 2013 'SVIT' Svit Praha, Praha

'Lord of the Flies' Wannieck Gallery of Modern Art, Brno 'Apokalyptik als Wiederstand - Collection Tom Biber

' Bavarian Army Museum, Ingolstadt

'Imaginaere Loesungen part 1' by F.Hufnagel, Kosmetik Salon, Berlin

'The Hecklers' curated by C.Lewisohn, The New Art Gallery Walsall, Walsall, England

'Dawn of the Hermetics - part 2' Wonderloch Kellerland, Berlin 'The best Haircuts in history' curated by C. Lewisohn, We are Cuts, London

'Visionen' Marta Heford, Herford '1.per.sing.' curated by Johannes Sperling , b - 05 Montabaur

'Hamburger Bahnhof' curated by O. Zybok , Power Galerie, Hamburg

'Images for Images - Artists for Tichy - Tichy for Artists' curated by Zdenek Felix, GASK Gallery of central Bohemia, Czech Republic

'The Beautyful Ones' curated by Storm Janse van Rensburg , Nolan Judin , Berlin

'Waar ken ick u van?' LUMC Gallery, Leiden

'Berlin - Klondyke' Werkschauhalle Leipzig

'Das Allerletze Prof. Winkler Stipendium' Kunstverein Weyden

'The Legend of the Shelves' Autocenter, Berlin

‘Dawn of the Hermetics’ Kosmetiksalon, Berlin 

‘Primitve Cabaret – A spiritual Voodoo confrontation’ Polad-Hardouin, Paris

2012

‘LAmerika-China’ Phoenixhalle , Hamburg ‘Fliegen’ Kuenstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin

‘Home is where the peppers grow’ Autocenter, Berlin

‘Convoi Berlin’ curated by J. Sperrling, Biksady Gallery, Budapest

‘Berlin–Klondyke’ Neuer Pfannenhofener Kunstverein ‘Thingsplace’ by John Brown, Superclub, Edinburgh

‘L’amour herouiqe’ MUba Eugene Leroy, Tourcoing

‘Necessarily True’ Garage, Rotterdam ‘Berlin Status (1) , Kuenstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin

‘The International Bongo Bongo Brigade -The hair in the cannibal-prophetic soup of Dr Emil Holub’ NTK Gallery, Prague

‘A Votre Decharge’ Chateau de Servieres, Marseille

2011 

‘Berlin Klondyke’ L.A Art Centre, Los Angeles

‘Gastspiel Paris Munich Teil 2’ Galerie Van de Loo Projekte , Muenchen

‘Verbrechen und Bild’ Kuenstlerverein Walkmuehle

‘The Magic Sexy Temple of Wonderloch’ Wonderloch Kellerland, Berlin

‘Dormition’ Contra Gallery, Slovenia ‘Rosskur und Stalldrang bei den Wolfs’ Atetier N.A Wolf, Berlin‘Berlin Klondike

2011

’ The Odd Gallery, Dawson City, Canada ‘Pure Freude’ curated by Jonny Mullen, nationalmuseum, Berlin

‘Moraltarantula 5’ Hamburg ‘Charlottenburg Diktator’curated by C.Malycha, Babbettes Bar, Berlin

‘Lady Paranoia and Mr Killer’ Gallery Polad-Hardouin, Paris

‘The International Bongo Bongo Brigade meet the Haffners’ Haffner Galerie,Innsbruck

‘The Raising of Lazarus’ nationalmuseum, Berlin ‘Best of Invites’ Wonderloch Kellerland, Berlin

‘Flashback’ Gallery Polad-Hardouin, Paris

2010

‘Wherever they Fell’ Wilkinson Gallery, curated by Anna Parkina, London

‘Powerhouse’ Power Galerie, Hamburg ‘Transcendenz ink’ Autocenter, Berlin

‘Richtigen Zeit am Richtigen Ort’ curated by C. Nathusius, Temporary Gallery, Cologne

‘White Stallions’ Fischer und Fischer Galerie, Berlin

‘Moraltarantula 4’ Hamburg

‘Schwarzgold’ Schloss Beesenstedt, Beesenstedt bei Halle

‘Zipor’ Galerie Lichtpunk – Ambacher Contemporary, Munich

‘Lontana’ Centre for Contemporary Art, Plovdiv, Bulgaria

‘International Bongo Bongo Brigade – Curated by the Holy Brocoli from India

’ MeetFactory, Prague ‘International Bongo Bongo Brigade – Queen Loser

’ Silwex House, London ‘Paranoid’ De Nederlandische Cacao Fabrik, Helmond, Netherlands

‘Easy Jetsetters’ curated by Lucy Stein, Forgotten Bar, Berlin

‘6th Biennale for Contemporary Art’ , Salle des Calandres, Eragny, France

‘Bushwick Schlacht’ Fortress of Solitude, New York

‘Domestic Violence’ Studio N.A Wolff, Berlin ‘Early Works’ Wonderloch Kellerland, Berlin

‘The Product of Exchange’ Sudhaus, Berlin/Texas Firehouse, New York

‘Obscene’ , Wiensalon Berlin ‘Riders’ Gallery Polad-Hardouin, Paris

2009 

‘Der Muede Tod’, Kai 10 Raum fuer Kunst, Dusseldorf ‘Zeigen’ Temporary Kunsthalle Berlin, Berlin

‘Les portes du Paradis’ Galerie Eva Bracke, Berlin ‘Free Nelson Mandela’ Spor Klublu, Berlin

‘George says: No Martini, No Party’, Apartement, Berlin ‘Am Anfang war das Ende’ Galerie in Ballhaus Ost, Berlin

‘Tjorg Douglas Beer presents . . .’ Forgotten Bar, Berlin

‘Friendly Fire’, PR17, Berlin ‘Transcendendenz Ink’ Forgotten Bar, Berlin

‘Moraltarantula II’ Hamburg ‘Borderline Pleasures’ Galerie Michael Janssen, Berlin

‘The lovers of Lutz Braun’ Galerie Antik, Berlin

2008

‘Moving Walls’, Museum of New Art, Detroit

‘Mathew,Mark, Luke and John’ , WhitelacesLivingRoom Gallery, Berlin

‘A4 Editions’ , Five Years Gallery, London

‘Sovereign European Art Prize Exhibition’ , Somerset House, London

‘Oil Prices reach Sky High’ , Ferenbalm Gurbue Station, Karlsruhe

‘Ecstatic Stairs’ Die Aenderei, Muenchen

‘Porridge Wogs’ Five Years Gallery, curated by Cedar Lewisohn, London

‘Madonna und Wir’ curated by C. Nathusius, Galerie Christian Nagel, Berlin

‘Eins zu Eins Ruegen’ Park Gut Kartzitz, Ruegen 2007 ’Autocenter 1’ Autocenter, Berlin

’Ben Cottrell, Andrew Gilbert, Andreas Hofer’, Forever and a day Buero, Berlin

‘Irresistible Magazine’ curated by Cedar Lewisohn, Tate Modern, London

‘Return to Forever’ Forever and a day buero, Berlin

„La Boum III“, Breslau / Warschau, Poland

„Niveaualarm“, Kunstraum Innsbruck, Austria

"Ketzer und Co. The Golden City", Galerie Jiri Svestka, Prague

2006

"Bellevue", curated by C.Nathusius, Galerie Eva Winkeler, Frankfurt

"La Boum II", Galerie Sie und Höke, Düsseldorf

"Psycho. Zeitgenössiche Positionen zwischen Seelenheil und Apokalypse", Kunstverein Mönchengladbach

"Ketzer und Co", Haus der Kunst, Brno, Czech Republic

"Horizont", Forever and a Day Büro, Kunsthaus Bethanien Berlin

2005

"Schwarz, Brot, Gold", Kunstverein Oldenburg "Viewing Club", Berlin/Hamburg /London Palace of the Zulu-Queen", Kunsthalle Pankow, Berlin

"Professor Winkler Stipendium", Berlin

2004

"Commando Henry Ford, Neuro Cafe, Stuttgart "Works on Paper", Forever and a Day Büro, Berlin

"The Banana Tree" with A. Hofer, A. Sourkova Neue Bahnhofstrasse 5, Berlin

2003

’Heckel und seine drei Scheisshaufen’ with A. Butzer and M. Selg Neue Bahnhofstr.5, Berlin

"Illegale Kunstwerke auf Papier", PR 17, Berlin "Ghadafi´s Ascension", Neue Bahnhofstr 5, Berlin

2002

"Friede, Freude, Freiheit", Galerie Maschenmode/Guido Baudach, Berlin ‘Express’ curated by O. Lanz, Schoenhauser Allee, Berlin

"Northern Exposure", Isle of Uist Art Center, Scotland

Publications

- ''The Life of Baby Afghan Squirrel' SPERLING/Taube Verlag, Munich, 2015.

- 'European Tribal Wars' Bavarian Army Museum, Kettler Verlag, 2015.

- 'Forte Commune (1914 - 2014) Forte Strino Military Museum, Vermiglio 'Andrew's Glorious Army crosses the Alps' published by Studio d'Arte Raffaelli,Trento, 2014.

- ‘Andrew Emperor of Africa’ Andrew Gilbert, published by Kerber Verlag, “Andrew you must kill your enemies before they kill you’ published by Q.H.S.O.I.Q.O.C.M.S Berlin, 2011.

- ‘Andrew Gilbert/Colonial Exhibition – Culloden 1746’ published by power galerie, Hamburg 2012.

- 'The 17th Lancers in the Anglo Zulu War, 1879'  Possible Press , Berlin.