An Interview with Barbara Kruger Discussing Her New Installation and Art in the Digital Age
There is a selection of artists whose work we can consider truly important in 2012. The most prominent among them continue to create without boundaries. Barbara Kruger's limitless work since the '80s has drawn from visual culture as much as it's redefined it, and in a world increasingly consumed by imaging and appearance, her art seems more relevant than it's ever been.
In the '60s, at age 19, Barbara Kruger was a graphic designer for Condé Nast, after dropping out of the Parsons School of Design. There, she learned that combining photos and text could be art.
In 1991, she created her early wall wrap installations in silk-screened black and white, because she couldn't afford color. The dawn of cost-efficient digital production with vinyl allowed her to add red and cover giant rooms.
Her work inspired the Supreme and OBEY logos. Shepard Fairey calls her one of his biggest influences. She placed the words "It's all about you / I mean me / I mean you" across Kim Kardashian's naked body on the cover of W magazine. She quoted Malcolm X, Courtney Love, and H.L. Mencken on an NYC bus project.
Belief+Doubt arrives at the Hirshhorn Museum on August 20, 2012, reminding us to question assumed authority and pay attention to how we treat one another. After interviewing curator Melissa Ho about the installation, Barbara spoke with us to explain the meaning of this work and how it fits into her vast repertoire.
