Gil & Moti at Pedrami Gallery
Gil (1968) & Moti (1971) were born in Israel and since 1998 live and work in Rotterdam. They are known for their unique social artistic engagement in art and for working strategically in multiple disciplines. They switch effortlessly between classical and contemporary artistic mediums of expression from photography, painting, video, performance, and installation art. They work together exclusively since 1998 and have been engaged in an on-going exploration of identity, the notion of individuality, and related social norms and forms. Their approach is based on a few simple rules: always to dress identically, to do everything together, and to own only one wallet, phone and set of keys between them. Via small-scale social interventions, they address important socio-political issues, such as discrimination, social exclusion and racism. As artists, a gay couple, immigrants and Jewish born (ex)Israelis, they have direct experience of such issues within their own personal lives. Their appearance invariably causes surprise and amusement, enabling them to raise the subject of identity and otherness in a way that is always subtle and playful, but no less serious. In recent years, works by Gil & Moti have been exhibited at the Nederlands Fotomuseum (Rotterdam), Lentos Kunstmuseum (Linz, Austria), Nikolaj Kunsthal (Copenhagen, Denmark), Stavanger Museum of Fine Arts (Norway), Tel Aviv Museum of Art (Israel), Kunsthalle Wien (Austria), and elsewhere.Their work is in private and public collections, among others: Tel Aviv Museum of Art (Israel), Petach Tikva Museum of Art (Israel), MUMOK, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien(Austria), Kunstmuseum Bochum (Germany), Haifa Museum of Art, (Israel). In 2015 they received the MK Award, Dutch prize for visual art.
Give Me More
The large series of gay sensual watercolors painted by Gil & Moti have a romantic touch; their romance has a closer date and deals with a dream of reconciliation, not the classical Western ideals of the Romance with deep emotions and dramatic landscapes. The motives behind their watercolor paintings are always taken from projects made in conjunction to other people. Creating friendly relations is an essential aspect of their art. The watercolor paintings have their origins in the project Dating Gil & Moti. On their website, they have suggested relations with Arab gay men. When it works, new art emerges; the painted figures overstep borders and conventions with the wish to make love not war.
The Gil & Moti Wedding Project
In June 2001, exactly when the legalization of same sex marriage was introduced to the world in Dutch law, Gil & Moti performed publicly their wedding, and ten days honeymoon in the foyer of the Rotterdam City Hall. It formed part of the official cultural program of the city of Rotterdam and was open to all city residents. The civil ceremony was uniquely conducted by the mayor himself. This highly theatrical event is to be seen in a video work.