Barbara Kruger

b. 1945

Barbara Kruger grew up in Newark, New Jersey, during the golden age of American advertising, which permeated all aspects of life and informed her now-signature style. Kruger briefly attended Syracuse University, then Parsons School of Design in New York City, where she studied with artists and photographers Marvin Israel and Diane Arbus. The following year, Kruger gained first-hand experience in creating magazine content as a page designer at Condè Nast and as a picture editor for Mademoiselle and House & Garden.

Kruger is celebrated for her iconic and politically charged works that blend photography and text. Her distinctive style often features black and white photographs overlaid with bold, white Futura typeface text on a red background. Kruger’s art challenges societal norms, consumerism, and feminism, using direct and provocative slogans that critique power structures and cultural conventions. Through her work, she continues to influence contemporary art and provoke thought on issues of identity, politics and media manipulation.

Her works are housed in major museum collections worldwide, including the Art Institute of Chicago, The Broad in Los Angeles, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Tate in London, among many others.