photographic silkscreen on vinyl
112 x 112 inches (1989)
Legend
| Bold text is written by the author of this page. |
| "Text in quotes are quotes directly from Kruger's texts." |
| Text in italics is commentary by others (found online). |
Violent imagery assaults the female form on a daily basis.
"And to those who understand how pictures and words shape consensus, we are
unmoving targets waiting to be turned on and off by the relentless seductions of remote control."
Every day we are rendered spectators to
our bodies as they become carriers for and are transmuted by gendered representations
of social location and inequality.
"I live and speak through a body which is constructed by moments which are formed by the velocity of power and money. ...I don't see the division between what is commercial and what is not commercial. I see rather a broad, nonending flow of moments which are informed if not motored by exchange."
The female body is so matter of
fact in its objectification and commodification that it has become the
oldest cliche in advertising.
"You think you can escape commodification. You can't."
Barbara Kruger uses these same forms of mass media to spread these strategic bits of resistance. Her images are stark, direct and disturbing.
Much of Kruger's work was made in poster form and placed in every-day environments throughout the world. It was not presented as 'art' but as 'just another poster'. This was an attempt to democratise the art system and place art out in the world. These works were not precious objects but functioned the same way as advertising.
They are postcards from the jagged edge
of social non-conformism and disidentification.
"I want to be on the side of pleasure and laughter
and to disrupt the dour certainties of pictures, property, and power."
- Barbara Kruger -
Untitled (Love is something
you fall into) 1990
Untitled
1981
Kruger Links:
All
the best of Kruger! I highly reccommend this site. It has all of my
favorite Krugers.
A
Review of a Barbara Kruger exhibit and installation. Very cool pictures.
A
whole bunch more of Kruger plates.
Laughter
Ten Years After: An Electronic Exhibition. (fabulous site!)
A Brief Biography of Barbara Kruger
A
nice little list of Barbara Kruger quotes from her book Remote Control
An
informative listing of Kruger's work and all her different projects, exhibits,
and publications.
Some
smart commentary on Kruger's work and its impact on mass media.
go back to my photography pages
