Barbara Kruger More Art
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.
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1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Offset
2010s Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Wood, Mixed Media, Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Cotton, Screen
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Offset
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Screen
2010s Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Cotton, Paper, Mixed Media, Screen
1990s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Lithograph, Offset
1990s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Lithograph, Offset, Screen
1970s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Ink, Mixed Media, Board, Lithograph, Offset
2010s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Paper, Glitter, Mixed Media, Screen
20th Century Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Mixed Media, Screen
Early 2000s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
2010s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Plastic, Polyester, Screen
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset, Board
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Paper, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
2010s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Wood, Screen
2010s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Ceramic, Porcelain, Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Cotton, Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Cotton, Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Barbara Kruger More Art
Laminate, Birch, Plywood
2010s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Wood
1980s Barbara Kruger More Art
Paper
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Screen
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Screen
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Lithograph
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Offset
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Offset
1980s Pop Art Barbara Kruger More Art
Offset