LEARN: About Barbara Kruger School Bus and Billboards for the LA Fund

Here’s What People are Saying About Barbara Kruger’s Public Art Exhibition for the LA Fund

“The importance of teaching as a profession has been tragically undervalued and the result will be a diminished American culture, And the place of the arts in the classroom is essential in encouraging invention, ambition, and an understanding of the importance and pleasures of living an examined life.”
-Barbara Kruger in GalleristNY

“…the Los Angeles Fund for Public Education (LA Fund) and the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) launched a huge public art project called “Arts Matter” using the work of Barbara Kruger to address the importance of arts education in Los Angeles public schools.”
-The Wall Street Journal

“the artist is none other than the legendary Barbara Kruger, whose signature black, white and red graphics — like a public service announcement meets reassuring Mad Men-era advertising — reads spectacularly well in L.A.’s urban environment.”
-LA Weekly

“Kruger, who called herself a product of public education, said she aimed to include thoughts that tied the ‘lack of education’ to ‘catastrophe’ in a humorous and critical way.”
-KPCC 

“What I hope for is that a better education encourages people to try and examine life.”
-Barbara Kruger in ARTINFO

“Product advertising banished from some Los Angeles buses and billboards in favor of a thoughtful campaign supporting the arts?! What’s our consumer society coming to?”
-ADWEEK

“a bus covered with the edgy, whimsical, boldly lettered work of Barbara Kruger.”
-L.A. Times

“This campaign… has quickly become both the best-looking and most ubiquitous advertising on L.A.’s streets”
-LA Weekly

“Kruger’s eye-catching bus wrap, ‘School Bus,’ is partly inspired by a project she did for New York’s Public Art Fund in 1997, simply titled ‘Bus,’ which ran for a month. The new buses include many education-themed slogans and quotations”
-ARTINFO

“even people who have no idea what the bus or billboards are supporting are posting photos on Instagram or Twitter because they’re drawn in by the message and execution.”
-LA Weekly

You can listen to an interview with Barbara Kruger about her artistic practice from The Modern Art Notes Podcast here.

Images:
Bus: Barbara Kruger, School Bus, 2012. © Barbara Kruger; Billboard: Barbara Kruger, Untitled, (Human History), 2012. © Barbara Kruger; Photo by Joshua White.

Barbara Kruger, School Bus, 2012. © Barbara Kruger. Photo by Joshua White.

Bus: Barbara Kruger, School Bus, 2012. © Barbara Kruger; Billboard: Barbara Kruger, Untitled, (Art Is), 2012. © Barbara Kruger; Photo by Joshua White.

LEARN: Alissa Walker on Suzanne Lacy’s Three Weeks in January

Alissa Walker Reports on Suzanne Lacy’s Three Weeks in January

In the last few years, unprecedented access to data has transformed the way we think about our safety. It is not difficult for us to look on the Los Angeles Times’ Crime L.A. app to see where the most recent violent crimes occurred in the city. I can see that a car was stolen a few blocks from my house last weekend. That an aggravated assault occurred near a spot on the L.A. River where I like to run. What we know about what happens our neighborhood can change our personal behavior—we might be more vigilant about locking our doors or walking alone at night. But when does having this data motivate us to take action? (more…)

LEARN: Performance Art in L.A.

As Part of the Citywide Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945-1980 Collaboration, the Getty Center has Recently Launched an Interactive Web Archive. ForYourArt Asked Claire de Dobay Rifelj to Help Navigate the Archive.

This dynamic site offers a digital snapshot of the art scene in Los Angeles from 1945–1980 via artworks, documentary images, video interviews with artists and a historical map related to its four exhibitions. (more…)

LEARN: Alex Israel’s New Mural in Venice

Alex Israel Talks with ForYourArt About His New Mural on Abbot Kinney Boulevard

This Friday marks the unveiling (and subsequent party, 7-11pm, ribbon cutting at 8pm) for a new mural created by native Angeleno Alex Israel.  The commission has been spearheaded by Esther Kim, the proprietor of a recently opened gallery on Abbot Kinney in Venice called VARIOUS SMALL FIRES (the name comes from a 1964 book by Ed Ruscha, who also kept a studio in Venice). The mural features imagery iconic of Los Angeles, from the lifestyle and the ethos of the Venice neighborhood to city’s nearby beach culture, all of which are prominent and recurring in Israel’s work. (more…)

LEARN: Glenn Kaino Represents U.S. at Cairo Biennale; Cesar Garcia Appointed U.S. Commissioner

Glenn Kaino Will Represent the U.S. at the 13th International Cairo Biennale in December

Los Angeles-based artist Glenn Kaino was recently selected by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State to represent the United States at the 13th International Cairo Biennale. Cesar Garcia, Associate Director and Senior Curator at LA><ART, has been appointed U.S. Commissioner. (more…)