At what point does a meme become a movement?
Memes are omnipresent. They permeate our daily lives. Just as genes transmit biological information from generation to generation, memes propagate cultural traits across societies, geographies, and time. Beyond reminding us that we are not alone in our thoughts and experiences, they serve as a powerful unit of measurement for cultural phenomena.
While the definition of a meme and its earliest examples remain debatable, what's certain is that memes have become a fundamental linguistic and social currency of the 21st century. These tiny yet mighty carriers of meaning facilitate dynamic, evolving communication through visuals, animation, audio, and text. Individually, they function like screenshots within our multifaceted cultural landscape. Collectively, they transcend generational, socio-political, and geographical boundaries—rewriting history while redefining how it can be documented, expressed, and disseminated.
Memes depend on context and timing. They cultivate rich virtual ecosystems, spreading and cross-pollinating through diverse demographics, ideas, and influences. They summarize and highlight, mimic and repurpose, appropriate and transform. The etiquette surrounding memes remains unwritten yet widely understood. Universal and intuitive, yet deeply personal and richly nuanced, memetic communication offers a new way for people to reflect on the past, comment on the present, and speculate about the future.
Join the Media Majlis Museum in Fall 2025 to explore how the evolving definition, significance, and impact of memes is reshaping communication. Through the themes of Mass and Length, discover the unprecedented breadth of authorship and audience reach in meme culture. Explore how some memes traverse global distances—being remixed and translated into new contexts—while others fail, highlighting nuances in language and culture that prevent satire from transcending borders.
Through Time and Volume, engage in debates around the endurance and impact of memes. Examine time-sensitive content alongside legacy memes that reframe contemporary settings with deep historical roots. Consider the minimum and maximum time and volume required for memes to influence political leaders, affect public figures, or catalyze social movements.
This exhibition creates an experience that demands attention in an era of chronic distraction. Through innovative scenography, design, interpretation, and art commissions, this exhibition aims to inspire and disrupt thinking around the core question: What does it mean to meme?