Cem A. is an artist with a background in anthropology. He is known for running the art meme page @freeze_magazine and for his site-specific installations. His work explores themes such as virality and performativity, often through collaborative projects.
Cem A.’s selected solo exhibitions and installations include Louisiana Museum, Barbican Centre, ZKM Karlsruhe, Berlinische Galerie, Künstlerhaus Bethanien and Museum Wiesbaden. His work was also included in documenta fifteen, Istanbul Modern, Mudam Luxembourg, Klima Biennale Vienna and 14. Biennial of Young Artists, Museum of Contemporary Art Skopje. He has held lectures at Royal College of Art London, HEAD Geneva, HDK Valand and Universität der Künste Berlin.
For inquiries, please contact artmarketlondon@gmail.com or fill out this form
Interview with Ben Davis, Artnet, January 2024
Interview with Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTNews, July 2023
Solo Exhibitions and Installations
Zentrum für Kritik und Memes (Center for Critique and Memes), ZKM, Karlsruhe, 2024 (ongoing)
They don't know, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, 2024
Joseph Beuys Says…, Museum Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden, 2024
I Like Art Market and Art Market Likes Me, Project Art Distribution, New York, 2023
Thank You for Your Understanding, Berlinische Galerie, Berlin, 2023
Theory is My Friend, Louisiana Museum, Humlebæk, 2023
Tack!, Parse Journal, HDK Valand, Gothenburg, 2023
Pleased to announce…, Versus Art Project, Istanbul, 2022
Hope You See Me As a Friend, Barbican Centre, London, 2022
The Party, Weserhalle, Berlin, 2021
Selected Group Exhibitions
Coding Culture – Emojis, Memes, Museum, MARKK Hamburg, Hamburg (forthcoming)
Duty of Care, Griffith University Art Museum, Brisbane (ongoing)
Timeless Curiosities, Istanbul Modern, Istanbul, 2024
Seekult Festival, Friedrichshafen, 2023
After Laughter Comes Tears, MUDAM, Luxembourg, 2023
Karma Coma, Anna Laudel Gallery, Bodrum, 2023
FLUXUS S(I)EX TIES, Museum Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden, 2023
Humor, Loved, Frowned Upon, Feared, Vögele Kultur Zentrum, Pfäffikon, 2023
Galeriefest, Grimmwelt Museum, Kassel, 2023
14. Biennial of Young Artists, Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje, 2023
The Art of the Football Scarf, OOF Gallery, London, 2022
documenta fifteen, Kassel, 2022
IV. Peligros de la Amistad, CPU, Palacio Barolo, Buenos Aires, 2021
Memennial 2020, Seattle; Dallas, 2020
Performances
2024
Crit Club with Özge Ersoy and Molemo Moiloa, The Couch by Het HEM, Zaandam (forthcoming)
Crit Club with Nikola Bojić, Bettina Freimann, Fette Sans, Abbas Zahedi, Organ Vida Festival, Zagreb
Crit Club with Ben Davis and Mi You, The Couch by Het HEM, Zaandam
Crit Club with Farid Rakun and Övül Ö. Durmuşoğlu, The Couch by Het HEM, Zaandam
Crit Club with Kara Chin, Jitish Kallat, Wang Tuo and Steph Huang, Art Basel Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Crit Club with Kate Brown, Moshtari Hilal, Ahmet Öğüt and Abbas Zahedi, Trauma Bar, Berlin
2023
Crit Club with Lucia Pietroiusti and Nora Sternfeld, The Couch by Het HEM, Zaandam
Crit Club with Renzo Martens and Karim Sultan, The Couch by Het HEM, Zaandam
Sticker Vendor Comes to Mudam, Mudam, Luxembourg
2022
Sticker Vendor Comes to Radio Alhara, documenta fifteen, Kassel
Sticker Vendor Comes to Gudskul, documenta fifteen, Kassel
Selected Talks, Lectures and Workshops
2025
Meme-thinking workshop with Harley Aussoleil and Frances Breden, MARKK Hamburg, Hamburg (forthcoming)
2024
Crit Club Workshop, documenta Institut, Kassel (forthcoming)
Crit Club Workshop, Para Site, Hong Kong
Meme-thinking Workshop, Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje
Meme-thinking Workshop series, Klima Biennale, Vienna
In Conversation with Sophie Publig, Klima Biennale, Vienna
Artist’s talk, Eaton, Hong Kong
Artist’s talk, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong
Meme-thinking Workshop, Non-conference, ZKM, Karlsruhe
Short course leader, HEAD Genève, Geneva
2023
Artist’s talk with Klaus Speidel, Crit Cross, Depot, Vienna
Meme-thinking Workshop, Diversity Week, University of Kassel
Artist’s talk, Brand New Art, Kraków
Lecture, Pratt Institute, New York
Meme-thinking Workshop with Frances Breden, Pop-Kultur Festival, Berlin
Panelist, Burn Out Symposium, E-WERK Luckenwalde, Berlin
Lecture hosted by documenta Institute, University of Kassel
Lecture at Weak Signals. New Narratives in Art, Universität der Künste, Berlin
Artist’s talk with Kolja Reichert, Berlinische Galerie, Berlin
Artist’s talk hosted by Rokolectiv Festival, Suprainfinit Gallery, Bucharest
Artist’s talk with Mateo Chacón Pino, Galeriefest, Grimmwelt Museum, Kassel
Artist’s talk, Art Market Society, Columbia University, New York
Artist’s talk with Sofia Asvestopoulos, The Article, Frankfurt
Panelist, Conversations: On the Form and Function of Meme Making, Art Basel Hong Kong, Hong Kong
In conversation with Dorian Batycka, UVNT Art Fair, Madrid
The Politics and Poetics of Exhibiting in Art Museums, Louisiana Museum, Humlebæk
Artistic contribution to How be an an Artist?, convened by Frank Wasser, NCAD Gallery, Dublin
Meme-thinking Workshop series, HDK Valand, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg
Meme-thinking workshop in collaboration with Harley Aussoleil and Frances Breden, Muthesius Kunsthochschule, Kiel
Artist’s talk, Rhizome Office Hours, Rhizome, New York
2022
Lecture, Istanbul Modern, Istanbul
Panelist, The Future of Critique Conference, Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn
Artistic contribution to "A Live TV Broadcast" a series of live-edited TV programs for Offener KanalKassel, as part of Joen Vedel's contribution to documenta fifteen, Kassel
Workshop in collaboration with Harley Aussoleil and Frances Breden, documenta fifteen, Kassel
Lecture, Axis Graduate Programme, Wakefield
Artist's Talk, Stellwerk Gallery, Kassel
Meme-thinking Workshop with sobat-sobat, documenta fifteen, Kassel
Il Gazzettino, curated by Lukas Feireiss, Venice
Meme-thinking Workshop, Barbican Centre, London
Short Course in collaboration with Abbas Zahedi, Royal College of Art, London
2021
Lecture, Universität der Künste, Berlin
Guest Lecture in Ahmet Öğüt’s seminar, Universität der Künste, Berlin
Short Course in collaboration with Abbas Zahedi, Royal College of Art, London
Guest Lecture, Sotheby's Institute of Art, London
Guest Lecture, Central Saint Martins, London
Selected Press
2024
BE Magazine, September
Interview with The Berliner, July
Interview with QP Magazine, April
Interview with Artnet, January
2023
TALK (Issue 4), published by Small Night Projects, December
Vogue Turkey, July
Interview with Arts of the Working Class, June
Transbordeur Photographie, 2023
Interview with Metropolis M, February / March Issue
Journal of Creative Pursuit, Issue 3, January
2022
Journal der Künste, November
Interview with Arts of the Working Class, November
Critical Meme Reader #2, November
Simulacrum Magazine, Vol. 30
Interview with TRT World, September
Milliyet Sanat, August
Gatekeeper Magazine, July
Interview with Acik Radyo, June
Interview with Dazed, May
Interview with The Art Newspaper, May
émergent Magazine, Issue 7, January
Kunstforum, Issue 279, January
2021
Institute of Network Cultures, December
Petruse Entertainment, September
Interview with The Art Gorgeous, August
Interview with Gallerytalk.net, August
Interview with Monopol Magazin, July
OOF Magazine, June
Curator’s Radar Podcast, April (Spotify) (Apple)
Gallerytalk.net, 2020
Frieze Magazine, Issue 211, 2020
Merchandise
Art Market Limited is a fictional brand satirising the art world. It has been created by Cem A.
Online orders: https://www.instagram.com/artmarketlimited
Available to purchase at:
Pro qm Buchhandlung, Berlin
Istanbul Modern Store, Istanbul
Mudam, Luxembourg City
Publications
The Meme Kit
Published by Cem A. in collaboration with Meme Studies Research Network
Writing by Mira Calix, Naomi Falk and İdil Galip; editing by İdil Galip
Design by Ines Barbosa da Costa
Accessible at:
documenta Archiv, Kassel
Istanbul Modern Library, Istanbul
Július Koller Society, Bratislava
HEAD Genève, Geneva
Para Site Library, Hong Kong
Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong
Tai Kwun, Artists' Book Library, Hong Kong
Available to purchase at:
Buchhandlung Walther König, Berlin
Pro qm Buchhandlung, Berlin
Mudam, Luxembourg City
La Dispersion, Geneva
Residencies and Institutional Collaborations
2023
Artistic Advisor, documenta Institut, Kassel
Artistic contributor, Post-Postmodernism: A Map for the Present, Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn
Artistic Contributor, Islands of Kinship, Jindřich Chalupecký Society, Prague
Curator-in-residence, SEA Foundation, Tilburg
Artistic contributor, the sustainable institution, E-WERK Luckenwalde, Berlin
Resident at Practitioners Program, Parse Journal, Gothenburg
2022
Harvester for documenta fifteen, Kassel
Harvester for IHK Kassel, Kassel