Doha, Qatar | August 20, 2025—The Media Majlis Museum at Northwestern University in Qatar will explore Internet memes through the lens of measurement in its 10th exhibition, "Memememememe," opening on September 1st, 2025, and running through December 4th, 2025.
Curated by Jack Thomas Taylor, curator of art, media, and technology, and Assistant Curator Amal Zeyad Ali, the exhibition examines how digital memes serve as cultural barometers, emotional shorthand, and vehicles for political commentary that influence contemporary consciousness. Through four interconnected themes—Mass, Length, Time, and Volume—it looks at how these small yet powerful units of culture spread, mutate, and measure our collective thought.
"As a university museum integrated in NU-Q's academic mission, the Media Majlis Museum blends scholarship, art, and media to make a fuller sense of the world we live in," said Marwan M. Kraidy, dean and CEO of Northwestern Qatar. "Memememememe takes something we encounter every day—memes—and asks us to look deeper at how they shape the way we think, connect, and communicate. It's a critical conversation about digital culture that bridges global and regional voices."
The exhibition transforms the familiar setting of a laundromat into a striking metaphor for how memes circulate through endless digital cycles, gradually shedding their original meaning in pursuit of virality. Showcasing the work of established and emerging artists from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and beyond, it invites reflection on the fragility of meaning in the digital age.
Anchoring the show is Dutch artist Jeroen van Loon's monumental Permanent Data (2020), a 12-kilometer-long fiber-optic cable imprinted with the entire Gutenberg Bible and thousands of contemporary YouTube comments on data loss and digital decay. Also featured is The Last Jedi (2013) by Saudi artist Abdullah Al Jahdhami. In Sarcastic Willy Wonka (2020), American artist Christine Tien Wang reimagines a viral meme as a monumental acrylic painting. Internet art duo Eva and Franco Mattes present Roomba Cat (2023), a wry yet poignant reflection on the increasingly blurred boundaries between emotional attachment and technological dependence.
"Memememememe invites visitors to rethink what we consider meaningful communication," said Taylor. "Memes are cultural signals shaped by geography, language, politics, trauma, joy, and shared experience. They aren't just entertainment; they're evidence of how we connect, critique, and construct identity in the digital age."
Newly commissioned works by Alia Leonardi, Andreas Refsgaard, Anne Horel, Eman Makki, Mauro C. Martinez, Orkhan Mammadov, and Seo Hyojung span themes from digital devotion to the fragility of data preservation. "By bringing memes into a museum setting, we're asking who gets to shape culture and how ideas ripple through our digital lives," said Ali.
The exhibition underscores the Museum's mission to stage boundary-pushing projects that confront urgent contemporary topics. "This exhibition zooms in on a communication device we all use daily yet rarely stop to interrogate," says Alfredo Cramerotti, director of the Media Majlis Museum. "Through design, scenography, and newly commissioned works, Memememememe invites us to reflect on the true cultural weight and influence of memes."
As the first university museum dedicated to exploring journalism, communication, and media in the Arab world, the Media Majlis Museum continues to create immersive experiences that challenge conventional narratives. Memememememe is open Sunday to Thursday, 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
About the Curators
Jack Thomas Taylor (b. 1991, United Kingdom) joined the Media Majlis Museum in 2017 as one of the founding curators and has worked extensively across multiple areas of the organization since its inception. In 2023, Taylor became a founding board member of the inaugural International Council of Museums (ICOM) national committee in Qatar.
Amal Zeyad Ali serves as Assistant Curator at the Media Majlis Museum at Northwestern University in Qatar. In 2024, she curated her inaugural exhibition at the Museum, entitled The limits of my language are the limits of my world. Ali is a 2018 graduate of Northwestern University in Qatar.
About the Media Majlis Museum
The Media Majlis Museum at Northwestern University in Qatar is the first university museum in the Arab world dedicated to exploring journalism, communication, and media. Through engaging exhibitions, publications, programs, and online resources, the Museum creates immersive experiences that challenge conventional narratives.
About Northwestern University in Qatar
Northwestern University in Qatar is known for its distinguished history, famous programs, and exceptional faculty. Founded in partnership with the Qatar Foundation, Northwestern Qatar provides a framework through which students explore the world and, ultimately, shape its future through its distinguished programs in communication, journalism and strategic communication, and the liberal arts.
