An exhibition about digital image worlds, rituals, and self-presentation

Digital images have become an integral part of our everyday lives. They permeate nearly every aspect of life – from quick Google searches and scrolling through Instagram or TikTok feeds to casual communication in WhatsApp group chats, taking screenshots as personal reminders, or snapping endless photos with our smartphones. We act as so-called “prosumers” – both producers and consumers of digital image worlds. Scrolling, liking, sharing, snapping, skipping, typing, deleting... these gestures have long become unconscious, repetitive everyday practices.

We deal in images – and these images develop agency of their own: they shape social structures, organize human relationships, influence communication between humans and machines, and define our perception. Digital images, their aesthetics, modes of use, and patterns of repetition help construct our reality.

A striking example of such image practices is the format #GetReadyWithMe (#GRWM), which lends the exhibition its title. This widely used hashtag represents a form of everyday self-presentation characterized by high recognizability and standardized routines. The content often follows similar patterns, creating visual rituals that function as social and cultural codes beyond their aesthetic surface.

These visual digital rituals also form the starting point for the artistic positions in the exhibition. In her 3-channel video installation "I WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN AGAIN!" (2022), Klara Kirsch explores the visual dramaturgy of public apology clips by influencers on social media. Recurring gestures, tones of voice, and image compositions in these formats are exposed, revealing the interchangeability of their statements. Sarah Straßmann's work "How to become fucking average" (2023) addresses the everyday use of photo filters. Her work reflects on visual standardization and self-presentation in digital media. In her series "iPhone Zooms" (2021), Victoria Pidust transforms seemingly banal everyday moments from her private smartphone archive through carefully chosen image sections. These iPhone-captured details create sculptural, abstract image worlds that evoke both photographic and painterly qualities.

#GetReadyWithMe brings together artistic positions that not only document digital image practices but also critically question, recontextualize, and aesthetically transform them. The exhibition invites viewers to see everyday visual rituals in a new light – as expressions of a collective culture of self-presentation and image-making in the digital realm.

An exhibition with works by Klara Kirsch, Victoria Pidust and Sarah Straßmann. Curated by Julia Brigasky, Friederike Eden, Jule Fechner, Sarah Straßmann.

Credits: Klara Kirsch: „I WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN AGAIN!“, 2022, Full HD Video, 5:58 min, 3-Kanal Videoinstallation