1986
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.
Barbara Kruger Annina Nosei 1983-1986 (announcements)
By Barbara Kruger
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Barbara Kruger Annina Nosei Gallery 1983-1986: A set of 2 rare, historic Barbara Kruger announcement cards published on the occasion of: - Barbara Kruger, Annina Nosei Gallery, New ...
Offset
Barbara Kruger Artists Space 1987 (announcement)
By Barbara Kruger
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Barbara Kruger Artists Space invitation announcement card, 1987: Rare folding announcement card for the Artists Space's Spring Benefit Party held at Federal Hall, New York City, Apri...
Offset
Barbara Kruger New York 2004 (announcement card)
By Barbara Kruger
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Barbara Kruger Mary Boone Gallery, 2004: Rare folding announcement card for Kruger's Back to The Future exhibition at Mary Boone: Oct. 28 - Dec. 18, 2004. Well suited for framing at...
Offset
John Baldessari 1987 exhibition poster (John Baldessari at Sonnabend 1987)
By John Baldessari
Located in NEW YORK, NY
John Baldessari at Sonnabend Gallery New York, 1987: Rare vintage original 1980s exhibition poster that makes for an excellent Baldessari collectible and frame piece. 'John Baldessar...
Lithograph, Offset
John Baldessari Sonnabend Gallery 1981 (announcement)
By John Baldessari
Located in NEW YORK, NY
John Baldessari, Sonnabend Gallery New York 1981: Rare early 1980s John Baldessari exhibition announcement published on the occasion of: "Shape Derived from Subject (Snake): Used as ...
Lithograph, Offset
Signed John Baldessari print 1991 (Baldessari Love and Work)
By John Baldessari
Located in NEW YORK, NY
John Baldessari Love and Work 1991: Baldessari’s Love & Work 1991, photogravure and color aquatint, features clasped hands clutching surrealistically amidst a black background. Classic, timeless Baldessari imagery that is sure to work well in any setting. Medium: Color photogravure and aquatint on wove paper. 1991. Dimensions: 26 x 11.5 inches. Well-preserved and in very good overall condition. Framed in acrylic plexiglass. One of the 15 numbered artist's proofs, aside from the general edition of 60. Signed, inscribed "A.P." and numbered 12/15 in pencil, lower margin. Published by Brooke Alexander, Inc., New York. Collections: MoMa New York John Baldessari: It is hard to characterize John Baldessari's varied practice—which includes photomontage, artist’s books, prints, paintings, film, performance, and installation—except through his approach of good-humored irreverence. Baldessari is commonly associated with Conceptual or Minimalist art, though he has called this characterization “a little bit boring.” His two-dimensional works often incorporate found images, composed in layers or presented as distinct pieces with an element of surprise, like a brightly colored geometric shape in the place of a face or a starkly printed sardonic caption. Baldessari has demonstrated a lasting interest in language and semantics, articulating these concerns through the use of puns or the juxtaposition of seemingly unrelated images and words, as in his 1978 work Blasted Allegories. His self-referencing photomontages and use of text have been sources of inspiration for countless artists, including Cindy Sherman, David Salle, and Barbara Kruger. Baldessari identifies his own artistic lineage, saying, "I would prefer to go to the source with Duchamp rather than credit Warhol as an influence." Related Categories: Surrealist. Ed Ruscha. Los Angeles. Conceptual art. Photography. Minimalist. John Baldessari prints.
Aquatint, Photogravure, Lithograph, Screen
Paloma Picasso FS II.121, Hand Signed Screen Print, Pop Art, 1975, Edition of 30
By Andy Warhol
Located in Aventura, FL
Paloma Picasso, from Hommage à Picasso. Screenprint in colors on Arches. Hand signed and numbered on verso by the artist. Published by Propyläen-Verlag, Berlin, and Pantheon Presse, ...
Paper, Screen
Portrait of Franca Marzi, Vintage Photo on Photographic Paper, 1960s
Located in Roma, IT
Vintage Photo. The Italian Actress Franca Marzi posing in the photo studio.
Photographic Paper
Object (with Flaw)
By John Baldessari
Located in New York, NY
Color lithograph in two parts, on two separate sheets of Arches 88 paper, these two sheets comprise two of the four parts of the original "Object (with Flaw)" publication, 1988. One...
Lithograph, Color
Barbara Kruger, Untitled (2Kiss)
By Barbara Kruger
Located in Hamburg, DE
Barbara Kruger (1945, American) Untitled (2Kiss), 2024 Medium: Screenprint on mirrored polished steel Dimensions: 30 x 30 cm Edition of 300 + 10 APs: Artist stamp, numbered Condition...
Steel
Autograph Portrait of Gertrud Kückelmann - Vintage b/w Postcard - 1960s
Located in Roma, IT
Gertrud Kückelmann's Mirabilia is a b/w postcard reproducing a photographic portrait of the beautiful German actress, Gertrud Christine Franziska Kückelmann (Munich, 1929 – 1979) th...
Paper, Photographic Paper
The Italian Actress Enrica Bonaccorti - Vintage Photograph - 1980s
Located in Roma, IT
Vintage Photo. The Italian actress, television and radio presenter Enrica Bonaccorti.
Photographic Paper
