'Using a silkscreened
frontal photograph of a model’s face, the artist gives the image
additional meaning by dividing the large canvas it occupies into
sections; from left to right, the bisected image reverses from
positive to negative, and from top to bottom, the face is divided by
the emblazoned slogan “Your body is a battleground.” Kruger
critiques the objectified standard of symmetry that is applied to
feminine beauty and perpetuated by media and advertising. The
composition originally included more text and was designed as a
poster for the massive pro-choice rally that took place on April 9,
1989, in Washington, D.C.'
'The woman’s face,
disembodied, split in positive and negative exposures,
and obscured by text, marks a stark divide. This image
is simultaneously art and protest. Though its origin is tied to
a specific moment, the power of the work lies in the timelessness
of its declaration.'
'Powerful. Bizarre. Haunting. These are some of the
words that come to mind with Barbara Kruger’s “Untitled (Your
Body Is a Battleground.)” The frame crops the image in such a way
that the viewer can see only the face of a woman. She stares directly
ahead, towards the top—gazing at the viewer. A line starkly cuts
through the middle of her symmetrical face: the left is a positive
image; the right, a negative one. and the right is a negative
production. And perhaps most startlingly, a sentence written in white
letters and highlighted in red is superimposed upon the picture in
three segments: “Your body is a battleground.”
The two halves of the
image—the negative and the positive rendition—emphasize the
twofold nature underlying this issue.
The figure is a
perfected icon of beauty, with a symmetrical face and voluptuous
lips. The image's history alludes to a societal fabrication of women.
As the stark line
divides the figure’s face in half, the viewer’s attention is
immediately drawn to the impeccable symmetry of the face; her
eyebrows are exactly the same shape, almost as if one is a mirror
reflection. The viewers come to read this image as a construct of
society, a stereotypical image of how women should appear: she is an
object of beauty.
In this image—a
stereotypical depiction of women by society—the woman is no longer
an individual. Rather, the depiction of the woman is a product of the
society. By adding text, Kruger critiques the circumstances under
which this image was originally produced.
This image would not
have borne such a significant political message without Kruger’s
captions. With Kruger’s decontextualization, the image reminds the
viewer that these struggles aren’t isolated incidents but ones that
women face on a daily basis.' (!!!!!!!!)
'unexpected phrases in
order to catch the viewer's attention using the language of
contemporary publications, grapic design, or magazines. Rather than
attempting to sell a product, her works aim to sell an idea to the
viewer that is meant to instigate a reconsideration of one's
immediate context.
From her use of clearly
legible font to her jarring palette of red, white, and black, each
element of the final artwork is crucial to its effectiveness as both
an artistic expression and a protest against facets of postmodern
life.
photographic positive
and negative sides, suggesting a highly simplified inner struggle of
good versus evil.
stare straight ahead
through the print, frankly addressing the viewer through both her
gaze and the words emblazoned across her face.'
'Kruger has never been
convinced of drastic oppositions – in her art there is no space for
dichotomies between right and wrong, good and evil, linearity and
degeneration. We are a whole, a holistic multitude of people who,
despite heterogeneous political convictions and personal beliefs,
live and communicate in the same space.
Kruger’s art has
often been considered conceptual due to the irreplaceable importance
of the language she uses, refers to, and values as a great method of
communication; as a consequence, images are simple, usually in black
and white, they don’t catalyze too much attention per se. It’s
the combination between words and pictures, their solid interaction
that impresses the viewer.'
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