Content Industrial Complex at 032c Gallery

032c Gallery is pleased to present “CONTENT INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX” with works by Allen-Golder Carpenter, Paul Ferens, Azize Ferizi, Shuang Li, David Shamie, Phillip Timischl, and Ryan Trecartin. The exhibition is on view from January 10 – February 12, 2025 at 032c Gallery, Kurfürstendamm 178, Berlin. It is open Wednesday to Saturday from 10 AM to 6 PM.

David Shamie, Annulment, Fixation, Black trigger massagers, acrylic, plexiglas 183 x 45 x 60 cm

David Shamie, Shallow Dive (9092 Blue), Black trigger massagers, acrylic, 122 x 94 x 56 cm

The rise of the object as a central figure in cultural discourse has shifted its role from its simple functionality to that of a mediator within systems of signs. No longer confined to its utility, the object becomes a participant in meaning-making, disrupting traditional notions of subjectivity. As Jean Baudrillard observed, objects function as passwords—codes that grant access to symbolic systems that structure relationships, identities, and cultural hierarchies. These passwords are not merely tools of navigation; they also operate as mechanisms of inclusion where the ability to decode a symbol determines one’s access to meaning.

Passwords operate in a dual capacity: they serve as both gateways and barriers. In a world increasingly defined by simulacra, Baudrillard argues that passwords collapse the distinctions between the real and the simulated. The object no longer simply represents—it produces meaning, becoming a critical node in a network of signs that shapes the social fabric.

The exhibition “CONTENT INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX” explores the potential of objects, their meanings shifting as they move through social, cultural, and digital contexts. This interplay recalls the moment a baby encounters its reflection in a mirror for the first time, discovering itself while simultaneously confronting a fragmented, externalized image of identity. The object of the mirror becomes more than a surface—it is a threshold, a site of recognition, alienation, and self-construction. Similarly, the objects in this exhibition shift between individual and collective narratives, shaping not only how identities are constructed but how they are communicated and understood. From the hyper-curated presentation of a refrigerator as a marker of elite aesthetics, inspired by Kris Jenner’s fridge, to the cryptic codes embedded in Black meme culture, the works in “CONTENT INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX” reveal the significance of objects as either tools of survival and resistance or as markers of luxury and aspiration. These meanings are not static but shift depending on the social, cultural, and historical contexts in which the objects are embedded.

Baudrillard’s idea of objects as thresholds resonates throughout the exhibition. Objects function as shifting references, their meanings contingent upon the observer’s cultural and social framework. They complicate our understanding of identity, inviting interpretation: What do they reveal, and what remains obscured? Who holds the keys to decoding their significance?

Philipp Timischl, Problems, video, 9 min 55 sec, 2016

Left: Allen-Golder Carpenter, Black Internet, video, 5 min 33 sec, 2023-24; Right: Paul Ferens, Refrigerator with champagne, supplements, snacks and prime; Refrigerator with seafood, meat cuts, fruits and vegetables; Refrigerator with with green vegetables and fruits, Lightbox, aluminum, 200x85cm, 2024

Ryan Trecartin, The Re'Search (Re'Search Wait'S), video, 40 min 09 sec, 2009–2010

Left: Shuang Li, Helena, 2022, Print on mesh between plexiglas, 124 x 187 cm, 2022. Right: Azize Ferizi, Composition back 3, Oil painting on paper, 2024

Opening Night Images

032c Gallery thanks the drinks sponsors for CONTENT INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX, Monster Energy and Desperados.