Brothers in art: Art duo The Connor Brothers brings their witty work to the Algarve

By: Ben Austin

The pair’s satirical paintings are the talk of the town

The Connor brothers are the art world’s pranksters. The clue is in their joint pseudonym. Their initial ruse and backstory consisted of a narrative that they were reclusive American twins, ‘Frankly’ and ‘Brendan Connor’, raised in a strict cult and escaped to New York.

A fabricated tale that British artists James Golding and Mike Snelle put out there to create some kind of intrigue and mystery, in the manner that Banksy’s real identity remains elusive to this day.

They finally came clean in 2014, having already achieved a degree of commercial success.

Fiction plays a large part in their work, much of which co-opts the front covers of Penguin books, under the guise of “modern philosophy” or the reimagining of 1950’s posters and vintage book covers.

Retro illustrative sexy women pout and strike sensual poses next to comic text and witty one-liners, such as “I don’t want to go to heaven none of my friends are there”. The same applies to their titles of modern philosophy – on a colour plane format we have puns like, “beauty is in the eye of the wine holder”. Funny yes, even outrageous.

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Sardonic comments and satirical juxtapositions are the hallmarks of this daring duo; they subvert expectations and challenge us to think about our perception of reality, in this “post truth” era.

By playing with notions of truth and lies, they are in business of myth making. The Connor Brothers are very much part of a Dada tradition, from Marcel Duchamp’s urinal to Maurizio Cattelan’s banana.

They employ absurdity in a tongue-in-cheek manner – jokes that have an underlying seriousness of thought and intention.

This status of art world provocateurs and subversiveness belies the fact that James and Mike have struggled with their own share of mental health issues and addiction.

As a result, they have been very active in philanthropic causes and social activism. They have used their art to raise awareness funds for various causes, including the refugee crisis, mental health initiatives (CALM), and free speech campaigns.

The duo has collaborated with the Russian feminist punk art group Pussy Riot and famously created a refugee-themed show at Banksy’s 2015 Dismaland.

Indeed, there is a strong co-relation between the world-famous, enigmatic urban artist and the Connor Brothers, who, like Barbara Kruger, use clever text to create sharp social critiques.

The artistic duo’s ability to blend humour, nostalgia and socio-political commentary has made them one of most distinctive double acts in contemporary art.

Their work is entertaining and jocular but also encourages the viewer to question the perceived narrative, to reflect on the contradictions and complexities of modern life. It is an existential thought-provoking art that pushes the boundaries.

The Connor Brothers have been widely featured in the media, with sell-out shows at galleries in Los Angeles and New York, Sydney, Dubai, London, Hong Kong, and Berlin.

Their work can be found in the collections of The Victoria and Albert Museum, The Penguin Collection and both the Omer Koc and Niarchos Collections. At Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Online auction in May 2021, The Bestest and Most Expensivist Painting in the History of Art (2020) sold for 300% more than the estimate.

Now, The Connor Brothers bring their work to Portugal.

“Artcatto is honoured to exhibit The Connor Brothers, artists with a social conscience, who use their voices to bring awareness of the many problems that face our society today.

Their strong imaginary resonates with their views. We are delighted to be first gallery represent the Connor Brothers in the Algarve,” states Gillian Catto, owner of the Loulé gallery.

The Connor Brothers’ work will be on show at ArtCatto from April 17, in a joint exhibition with Michael F. Rumsby, Seaty and Jürgen Lingl.