This is just a little taster of my forthcoming dissection of the French Presidential Election posters but has anyone else noticed the uncanny ressemblance of Ségolène Royal’s main election poster to Barbara Kruger’s artwork? Methinks this is no coincidence.
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I guess it is her clin de l’oeil? But actually I don’t mind that she appropriated the formate. Know what I mean?
delphine
delphine said
Know what you mean. I’m not sure about its effectiveness regarding whether people know about Kruger’s political stance or not, but it’s distinctly different aesthetic does set her apart. However, the picture has this weird 70s terrorist aspect to it… I keep thinking Patty Hearst.
Administrator said
Well first I thought Patty Hearst but then I realised that they’d been heavily influenced by that great British photographer John O’Donnell, unappreciated on Flickr but who does some wicked work. See what I mean below :
john o'doe said
Here’s the obvious influence from underrated British artist John O’Donnell:
john o'doe said
john o\'doe said
very very strange comments from a *great* British photographer. Are you a conceptual artist too?
Administrator said
i could claim i was being ironic but in truth my lack of tech is making me look silly
try this:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/178/394134220_0ec0f5f6ce.jpg
john o'doe said
Well John, I’m not sure Sego has twigged on to your aesthetic yet. Better call her, tout de suite.
Administrator said
I’ve talked to at least ten people about this and they’ve all said, “Hmm… Barbara Kruger… that name rings a bell…” but nothing more concrete than that. So it makes me super happy to see this post!
As soon as I saw the poster for the first time, I stopped dead in my tracks and thought, “Barbara Kruger rip-off.” It sends a powerful message to those who KNOW who she is, but apparently there are less of us than I thought there were.
Lee said
Finally! Someone else! Thanks Lee.
I wonder, though, if there is something built into the actual aesthetic, the red white and black, the use of text in this exclamatory fashion, that operates slightly abrasively, as if her party were afraid to say that femininity was not just a tool of power.
Administrator said
firstly, kruger based her aesthetic on lenin and the artists at the time who wanted to propagate the ideas of the state etc…
secondly….and this i found on the uk socialist review site…march 2006.
“The Selfridges campaign has been part of a three-year collaboration between Kruger and the retailer, which was developed by Mother - an “edgy” advertising agency who specialise in “anti-advertising”. Mother’s campaigns tend to reverse the standard cliches of advertising in an attempt to reach jaded audiences. They are responsible for the Orange mobile phone ads you may have seen at the cinema, which play on the idea that you don’t want corporate culture ruining your movie - as a way of reminding you to turn off your phone.
Kruger has not commented on her involvement with Selfridges. Maybe she thinks that this is the perfect venue for her work. But the recuperation by corporate capitalism of her ideas and signature style seems a heavy price to pay for someone who has built their reputation on being critical of the way corporate images control and limit human consciousness and potential.
Whatever she may think, James Bidwell, Selfridges’ marketing director, is under no illusions. Discussing the campaign, he said, “There seems to be a standard template for sale advertising among retailers, but we wanted to do something completely different. Kruger’s work engages on several levels and will add to the overall Selfridges sale experience.”
just some thoughts….
delphine
delphine said
Of course Kruger’s work references the Constructivists and early turn of the century political montages. That it was used for propaganda after speaks not only for its contribution to design language but also with the concurrent nascence of a distinct communist aesthetic supported by a party.
What I want to call attention to, specifically, is that Kruger’s work is abrasive. Something I have found to be a particularly unconvincing argument is when feminism is posited as an agressive force, as if agression was the only power available. Which is why I think Sego’s campaign consultants are confused. They want both to harness her image and face as a female icon, and yet render it almost abrasive to erase her “softness.” What up with that?
Administrator said
Pissed Off Artists Allegedly Urinate on Kruger Art
Installation
A group of artist protesters calling themselves “The
Infinity Lab” were arrested Thursday after witnesses
reported acts of vandalism on the new Barbara Kruger
Installation commissioned by University of California
San Diego’s Stuart Collection.
The protesters chanted, “Another formulaic Kruger”,
as one of them allegedly urinated on the
installation’s floor text. Campus police arrested the
3 protesters as they continued to mock the
installation.
Thursday’s protest may have inspired another
disturbing act of vandalism this time reported at Los
Angeles County Museum of Art on Friday. Apparently, a
protester threw bags of fecal matter at Kruger’s mural
in the Eli Broad Collection.
Due to the two acts, there is elevated security
around all of Barbara Kruger’s public artworks. So
far, Kruger has not been available for comment.
Judi Collins said