Theory is My Friend, 2023

Louisiana Museum, Humlebæk

The artist Cem A. is known for running the meme account @freeze_magazine on Instagram. Shared through social media, a meme is a composition consisting of an image or video combined with text, often written in a satirical, provocative or esoteric language. Cem A.’s memes explore topics such as survival and alienation in the art world through a humorous and ironic lens.

In response to the conference “The Politics and Poetics of Exhibiting,” Cem A. has created eight fictional exhibition posters that temporarily replace existing posters in the Louisiana Café. Cem A. adapts internet memes to the Louisiana’s visual aesthetic. Through this approach, the posters become a site- specific intervention that reflects on the role of memes both as a form of art and institutional critique. The posters invite visitors to consider the power art institutions have in shaping our shared understanding of art history.

Theory is My Friend is part of the conference “The Politics and Poetics of Exhibiting: Proposing New Institutional Models Through Exhibitions” organised by Aarhus University and Louisiana Museum of Modern Art.