Thinking of You

by Barbara Kruger, Rosalyn Deutsche, Katherine Dieckmann

This is the most comprehensive publication ever produced on the work of American artist Barbara Kruger. Kruger, one of the most influential artists of the last three decades, uses pictures and words through a wide variety of media and sites to raise issues of power, sexuality, and representation. Her works include photographic prints on paper and vinyl, etched metal plates, sculpture, video, installations, billboards, posters, magazine and book covers, T-shirts, shopping bags, postcards, and newspaper op-ed pieces.

This book serves as the catalog for the first major one-person exhibition of Kruger's work to be mounted in the United States. The book, designed by Lorraine Wild in collaboration with the artist, contains texts by Rosalyn Deutsche, Katherine Dieckmann, Ann Goldstein, Steven Heller, Gary Indiana, Carol Squiers, and Lynne Tillman on subjects associated with Kruger's work, including photography, graphic design, public space, power, and representation, as well as an extensive exhibition history, bibliography, and checklist of the exhibition. The cover features a new piece by Kruger, entitled Thinking of You, created especially for the catalog.

The exhibition was organized by Ann Goldstein, curator at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

Copublished with The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

EXHIBITION

Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
October 17, 1999-February 13, 2000

Whitney Museum of American Art
New York City
July 13-October 22, 2000

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art and Photography

268 pages, Hardcover

First published December 7, 1999

Reviews

[Tatiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

she is my rebecca brown of the art world. hers was the first exhibit in my life that i walked into and understood why people make art and other people come and pay and take it in. i spent all my money that summer going to see her exhibit over and over again, paying the ridiculous entry fee each time and dragging some poor unsuspecting friend with me. i paid way too much for this book and it is worth every penny. i love her.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've loved Barbara Kruger's art for a while now, so it was great to seek it out more consciously. Thinking of You covers a wide range of her works and has lots of interesting essays and interviews. I learned a lot about Kruger and her art, and I got to see some really cool pieces I otherwise wouldn't have. If I ever turn into a person who has coffee table art books, this might have to be one of them.

[Jaimie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, Barbara, we are thinking of you… Collecting in monograph form the artist’s major solo show at the Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles) we are treated to an abundant selection of her thought-provoking work that has yet to be rivalled by a post-career retrospective (and let that day be far off in the future, thank you). From the very first pages we are thrown headfirst into the art, with an in-your-face full-page design that places each piece in a stark independent relief that mirrors the minimalism (and brutality) of Kruger’s style. Interrupting the flow of illustration after a dozen pages, we’re met with the first non-art centric text of the collection, printed on a soft green paper and carrying the voice of Gary Indiana. He speaks in general terms about Kruger’s art, painting a picture of her cultural impact that at once provides a decent artistic overview but is mired in the self-aggrandizing mode of many art critics. Thankfully his essay is short, so we don’t have to suffer too much before we’re back with Barbara. In total, there are 8 pieces of writing (including an interview with Kruger and statements from the exhibition’s organisers) breaking up what could wind up being an overwhelming amount of graphic material, which provide some interesting commentary on the various aspects of Kruger’s themes, subjects, and style. I didn’t enjoy most of the writing (I rarely do, when it comes to formal art critiques), but they at least provide a decent range of entry into thinking more critically about Kruger’s work with subjects ranging from the graphic design and “found” photo elements of her work to her place in the social milieu of the (feminist) art world. The collection itself, separated loosely into almost-visually thematic sections by the green textual chunks, shows a finite chronology of Kruger’s output - ranging from architectural installation details to her highly recognizable (and often copied) printwork, with sculptures and editorial/advertorial pieces filling in as well. Being mostly familiar with Kruger’s more graphic-oriented range, the book was an interesting revelation for me of the artist’s true depth. Some of the newer (to me) pieces were easy to put in place (such as the in situ installations which immerse viewers in her bold/harsh graphics) with what I already knew and liked, but others definitely stoke a need to explore in more depth the themes that surround and drive her artmaking as a whole. We already knew that Kruger was far more than the surface level, but the further we go down the rabbit hole of discovery the more questions we begin to have - which might be just the way to summarise the multilayered minimalism of Barbara Kruger.

[Wasabi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collage inspiration.