The work of Barbara Kruger, often bold and confrontational, draws on the artist’s experience as a graphic designer for Condé Nast. Combining found images with her own in blunt typeface, Kruger shocks viewers into addressing and questioning aspects of modern American society and culture that are often taken for granted. Her work has encompassed critiques on sexism, consumerism, the digital age, and more. In "Untitled (You Construct Intricate Rituals)", she turns her eye towards the construction of gender identities. Kruger draws meaning from a found photo, highlighting the contrast between the joy of the men’s smiles and the violence of their fighting. The text directly addresses the viewer, implicating both the individual and society in forming ideas of gender and intimacy. Why is violence placed so close to intimacy? Why does she choose to show men in this piece? And what do viewers’ many, often competing answers to those questions say about ideas of gender today?

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