Episode notes
Barbara Kruger is a fascinating and profoundly influential artist. She works in big, bold text usually in white font over ribbons of red. The text is usually superimposed over black and white photos, usually of people. The messages say stuff like “YOUR BODY IS A BATTLEGROUND,” “WE DON’T NEED ANOTHER HERO,” or “DON’T BE A JERK.”
If this doesn’t ring a bell yet, you can find thousands of samples of her work on the internet. Maybe the fonts and colors remind of you something: the Supreme logo? That Instagram filter? It all started with Barbara Kruger.
She does a lot of installation work these days, which is a fancy way of saying that her work just consumes entire rooms – huge rooms with huge strange writing taking up every inch of floor, ceiling, and walls.
Her messages are pretty clear: it’s about politics, media, and culture, and the way it’s presented provokes people to question themselves.
Her work is on display in Los Angeles at the Broad Contemporary Art Museum, and in contemporary museums across the world.
Click here to listen to Barbara Kruger’s interview on YouTube.
In this episode...
Guests
- Barbara Kruger
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Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.
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