FRED’s blog

If anyone ever tells you that contemporary art has no relevance to the so-called real world, show them these two pictures.

The bottom one is the branding for this summer Selfridge’s sale, while the upper one is Barbara Kruger’s 1987 artwork.

It shows that art can and does invade the wider culture, but something, to my mind is lost. Of course, Selfridge’s are poking fun at themselves and the idea that shopping is a salve for our daily troubles, but of course they still sell. Having one’s cake and eating it springs to mind.

How would I feel if I was Barbara Kruger on a break in London and I saw this? I suspect I’d be livid, but part of me would be delighted that it only took 20 years for my work’s style to become part of the wider culture.