Moon Youth

"In Gilbert & George's work, the main parts tend to be played by boys. It is through them that the artists formulate their vision of a new life and its imagery. The concern with youth, as expressed for instance in titles beginning with YOUNG or YOUTH, has its origin in the hope of new life. The freshness, the unjadedness, the very immaturity of these boys stands symbolically for the future unfolding of a life that has as yet no existence. They are the heralds of an achieved reality that is to come. Youth is thus neither fetishized nor in any way desired. Nor are the artists flirting with a new generation, currying favour with their juniors, or patronizing anyone at all. Gilbert & George employ their male models exclusively to provide what any imagery of life must have: the human image." (W. Jahn, The Art of Gilbert & George or An Aesthetic of Existence, London 1989, p. 353.)