Barbara Kruger Furniture
Rising to prominence in the 1980s, iconic conceptual artist Barbara Kruger pioneered a combination of type and image in her signature colors of black, white and red that continues to captivate audiences and posit a forceful feminist critique of media and politics.
Kruger examines social issues and cultural forces like sexism and consumerism in her typically large-scale, widely imitated work, which sees her layering terse chunks of text in fonts such as Futura Bold Oblique over found black and white mass media photographic images. Radical and stimulating, her collages draw on her background as a commercial graphic designer for magazines at Condé Nast as well as her albeit brief time as a student at the Parsons School of Design in New York City, where Kruger studied under artists such as Diane Arbus.
Kruger’s use of straightforward, accessible language to make powerful statements recalls advertising slogans or magazine headlines — by employing the structure of the very thing she is critiquing, she subverts that specific medium’s reach and meaning.
The phrases that Kruger superimposes onto the imagery in her work are as pointed, direct and authoritative as the visuals, with best-known examples including I Shop Therefore I Am and You Are a Captive Audience. The artist is also a staunch feminist, using her work to make overt political statements such as in Untitled (Your Body Is a Battleground), which was initially created in 1989 to promote a women’s march in Washington, D.C., aimed at antiabortion legislation. By using “you” and “I,” Kruger invites viewers into the piece and forces them to reflect on their own position in society as well as how they interact with one another in contemporary life. In an increasingly politicized era that finds us engulfed in imagery like never before, her art is more urgent and arresting than ever.
Kruger’s works can be found in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Whitney Museum of American Art and other institutions.
Find Barbara Kruger art on 1stDibs.
2010s American Barbara Kruger Furniture
Stoneware
2010s Chinese Barbara Kruger Furniture
Porcelain
1980s Japanese Post-Modern Vintage Barbara Kruger Furniture
Lucite, Glass
1970s French Beaux Arts Vintage Barbara Kruger Furniture
Ceramic
Late 20th Century German Post-Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Porcelain
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Barbara Kruger Furniture
Stoneware
Late 20th Century German Post-Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Porcelain
Late 20th Century American Organic Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Pottery
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Pottery
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Barbara Kruger Furniture
Stoneware
20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Stoneware
Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Barbara Kruger Furniture
Ceramic
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Barbara Kruger Furniture
Stoneware
