Barbara Kruger

(American, born 1945)

Barbara Kruger is a contemporary American artist known for her use of bold red, white, and black type overlaid with images of cultural critique. Her work examines the stereotypes and behaviors of consumerism through the eyes of feminist discourse with jarring sophistication. The use of three colors and Futura Bold Oblique font, is inspired by the politically charged works of Constructivist Alexander Rodchenko. Kruger offers up short phrases such as Thinking of You (1999-2000), You are a captive audience (1982), or I shop therefore I am (1987) to convey brief yet pointed criticisms. “I work with pictures and words because they have the ability to determine who we are, what we want to be and what we become,” she has said. Like multimedia artist Jenny Holzer, Kruger uses language to broadcast her ideas in a myriad of ways, including prints, T-shirts, posters, photographs, electronic signs, and billboards. Born on January 26, 1945 in Newark, NJ, Kruger worked as a graphic designer and art director after studying at both Syracuse University and Parsons School of Design under Diane Arbus and Marvin Israel. Her work has gone on to influence a generation of younger artists such as Shepard Fairey and Lorna Simpson. She currently lives and works between New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA. Today, Kruger's works are held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, among others.