BARBARA KRUGER | THINKING OF YOU, I MEAN ME, I MEAN YOU
by Saidat Animasaun
“ It was all about how you create arresting works, and by arresting I mean stop people, even for a nano-second. ” ~ BARBARA KRUGER
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I recently paid a trip to the Serpentine South Galleries where they are currently exhibiting recent works of Barbara Kruger in the latest exhibition “Thinking of You, I Mean Me, I Mean You”.
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The infamous Barbara Kruger creates highly expressive and engaging pieces and being familiar with her work I was excited to view her latest creations. Straight off the bat, I think this exhibition was decent. It was really interesting to see Kruger’s work in person, but with the recent digitalisation of them, I honestly don’t see
a distinction between viewing them digitally or in person.
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​I strongly appreciate the raw use of red in all of Kruger’s work and her approach to including striking imagery which beautifully supports the words. But I do think it might be a bit counterproductive to display work with the social-political context such as hers being displayed in a gallery hidden away in a prestigious garden located in the West End. This only promotes a contained atmosphere that goes against the purpose of her work. Similar to the work of Jenny Holzer I believe Kruger’s work is meant to thrive outside where it can easily be accessed and appreciated by a wider community. Especially, in these unstable times, I strongly believe her work could serve as a means of bringing people together and fostering greater understanding. Therefore, I think her work would thrive better in an external environment.
Albeit the display of work being interesting I wouldn’t describe it as fluid but it’s quite evident that thought was put into it. Considering perception, the flow of work might have been a bit too jarring, but it was interesting to experience these different formats of Kruger’s work. The video pieces made her work seem alive but I believe the static words resonated stronger in my brain.
Overall, I do think it was a good exhibition and it provides you with a chance to be captured by the stark vividness of Barbara Kruger’s work.