Face It (Green) 2007

Curator: First impressions? The green is sort of aggressive, almost radioactive! What do you make of it? Editor: That vibrant green definitely grabs your attention. It's provocative, maybe a little unsettling—which I think is precisely what Barbara Kruger intended with her 2007 piece, "Face It (Green)". Curator: Yes! Kruger's work often feels like a slap in the face, doesn't it? I love how she uses this high-contrast, almost jarring aesthetic. Like a billboard, demanding attention, but then undercutting itself with the message. Editor: Exactly! Kruger's a master of appropriation, using familiar advertising techniques to critique consumer culture. Look at the layering of the bold text blocks "Face It" over the image of what appears to be an expensive garment and that little label stating "This luxurious garment won't make you rich or beautiful". It exposes the empty promises of capitalism, how it preys on our insecurities. Curator: It's like a Trojan horse, right? The attractive design sucks you in, but then BAM! She hits you with the truth. I'm thinking a lot about identity and performativity. How we perform our identities through these carefully constructed consumer choices. Like, I can wear a beret to scream artist but, is it *me*? Or is it a construct? Editor: Right! And she's cleverly addressing how capitalism specifically markets to anxieties around self-worth, especially in relation to beauty standards. Kruger highlights the ways in which capitalism perpetuates these false narratives for profit. That toxic message of lack... the green almost becomes nauseating. Curator: I get it. This piece speaks to the commodification of everything, including ourselves. What do you take away from it all? Editor: Kruger asks us to confront our complicity in systems that devalue us. A kind of fierce intervention challenging power dynamics in media, gender, class, and consumerism. "Face It" forces you to see, but then what? Are we awake yet? Curator: So true. I think it reminds me that as easy as it is to be seduced, being self-aware and seeing the truth actually can set us free. Kruger's so good at shaking us out of complacency and letting the sharp edges speak.