Barbara Kruger

"I work with pictures and words because they have the ability to determine what we are and what we are not." - Barbara Kruger

I was told by a lecturer to look at work by Barbara Kruger, and I later came across her work in the Graphic Agitation book.  Her work is distinctive and obtuse in its approach to the message in each piece; quite far removed from the work of Shigeo Fukuda which I spoke about in my previous post.
Kruger's aesthetic is  always recognisable as her own - black and white photographs overlaid with slogans in outlined in angry red boxes.  Her work is often associated with feminism and combatting rape culture, consumerism and stereotypes of gender.  The combination of bold images with heavy text (Futura Bold Oblique, or Helvetica Ultra Condensed) means her work appears a confrontation against certain ideas of society. In an interview she was quoted as saying: "Pictures and words seem to become the rallying point for certain assumptions.  There are assumptions of truth and falsity and I guess the narratives of falsity are called fictions.  I replicate certain words and watch them stray form or coincide with the notions of fact and fiction."

Kruger's work centres around the practise of appropriation art, previously used by pop artists and surrealists.  Appropriation art uses images that already exist, in Kruger's case vintage prints, pretty much as they are with no change to the image itself.  Instead extra elements are brought in and added to the art - Kruger uses text for this.  Perhaps the most famous example of appropriation art is The Readymades of Marcel Duchamp, who wrote on a urinal and called it Fountain, and installed a coat rack as is at a gallery exhibition.   Kruger's use of pictures, particularly of an editorial or advertisement style, stemmed from her experience working in editorial design at Conde Nast publishing.

Fig 1. 

Fig. 2

An installation at , All Violence is the Illusion of a Pathetic Stereotype is presented in a way that almost assaults the viewer visually.  The work is set up in a room where art is on all walls and the floor.  The body of text on each surface reads: "All that seems deaf hears you.  All that seemed sum knows what's on your mind.  All that seems blind sees through you.  All that seemed silent is putting the words right into your mouth."  The effect of this multi-surface artwork is that "the architecture is manipulating the way you speak."   The chess board seen in Figure 2 seems to me to be a response to the game of sexual politics where men dominate in society, inviting people to take part and consider the issue more.

Kruger's Face It is a criticism on the ideas pushed upon society by the fashion industry, who praise shallower qualities such as youth and attractiveness and tell people that investing in high-fashion items will make them so.  In a similar vein, I shop therefore I am (Fig.)  hits out at consumer culture and the idea that we are what we own.

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

It's a Small World But Not If You Have To Clean It hits out at the stereotype that only women do the cleaning and that their place is in the home.  The phrase "It's a small world" hints at a continuation of "…for a woman", meaning that they are boxed in by the limited opportunities their gender allows them and pigeon-holed by society as only having certain roles.

Fig. 7

Above: Think Twice is a warning to women about the dangers of date rape drugs being spiked in drinks.  The big chunky text is glaring against the black and white, giving a loud and urgent message.  The visual rhetoric is further hinted at by the effervescent substance (intended to be perceived as a drug) that is dissolving on the surface of the water, suggesting that it will soon disappear and be undetectable.  

Fig. 8

We Don't Need Another Hero warns boys and young men that their idea of the "masculine" hero asserting his strength, sometimes in a threatening way, is no longer OK in society.

Fig. 9

You Are Not Yourself presents an image of a woman whose reflection has been fragmented in the mirror by impact to the glass, most likely a punch.  The cut up lettering further suggests turmoil and disorientation felt by the woman in the image.

Fig. 10

One of Kruger's best-known pieces, created in response to the anti-abortion debate.  The piece could be interpreted in many ways out of that context and still be successful, what with the issues that still surround negative body image issues in the Western World.  With pieces such as this one, the viewer has a direct response on an emotional level, which is what all of Kruger's work aims to do.

Fig. 11

Your Gaze Hits The Side of My Face is an emotional plea against catcalling and objectifying women.  To me, the use of the word "hits" suggests that it is a woman talking to a man, as the word has aggressive connotations usually associated with men.   

Fig. 12 

Probably one of Kruger's most overtly critical works,  Questions does exactly that - questions an American viewer's pride in their country through repeated asking of questions related to which groups in the country have the most freedoms or oppressions. "Look for the moment when pride becomes contempt" says to us that we must consider the unfairness of the social system in the US.  The composition mimics the national flag, a symbol of pride and freedom in America.  By turning it into an accusation of sorts, Kruger presents a harsh truth behind the "idealised " image of the American Dream.

To conclude this post on Barbara Kruger's approach, consider the quote: "I think there are lots of ways to make good work.  You can throw big bucks at a project and make what some would call crap, or you can work very modestly with eloquently moving results."  Krurger's work has been useful to look at as it is a very overt kind of graphic art, in that it is blatant about questioning and opposing social conventions.  I am interested to see how works like this could persuade a person to change or question a current opinion in comparison to more subtle works such as those of a subversive method.

References:

Macnevin, Suzanna, date unknown.  Barbara Kruger: The Art History Archive - Feminist Art. [online article] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/Barbara-Kruger.html
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Images

Fig. 1: 1991. All Violence is the Illusion of a Pathetic Stereotype [installation, online image] Available at: http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-All-Violence-is-an-Illustration-of-a-Pathetic-Stereotype-1991.jpg

Fig. 2:  All Violence is the Illusion of a Pathetic Stereotype [chess board]

Fig 3: 2007.  Face It (Cyan) [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Face-It-Cyan-2007.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 4: 2007.  Face It (Yellow) [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Face-It-Yellow-2007.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 5: 1987.  I Shop Therefore I Am.   [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-I-Shop-Therefore-I-Am-I-1987.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 6: 1990.  It's A Small World But Not if You Have To Clean It.  [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Its-a-Small-World-But-Not-If-You-Have-to-Clean-It-1990.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 7: 1992.  Think Twice [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Think-Twice-1992.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]\

Fig. 8: 1985.  We Don't Need Another Hero [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Untitled-We-Dont-Need-Another-Hero-1985.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 9: 1984.  You Are Not Yourself.   [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-You-are-not-yourself-1984.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 10: 1989.  Your Body Is A Battleground [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Your-body-is-a-battleground-1989.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 11: 1981.  Your Gaze Hits The Side of My Face.  [online image] Available at:
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Your-Gaze-Hits-the-Side-of-My-Face-1981.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]

Fig. 12: 1991. Questions. [online image] Available at: 
http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/images/BarbaraKruger-Questions-1991.jpg
[Accessed 7th November 2014]