BE.LIKE.ME. Social Media and Me

Anger 28/29, Erfurt, Germany
Curator: Susanne Rockweiler
Artists: Anaïs Goupy, Jeppe Hein, Marc Lee, Jonas Lund, Volker März, Maria Mavropoulou, Erwin Stache, Paula Wolber, Faina Yunusova, Bettina Zachow as well as the three artists working together at the ZKM (Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe) Bernd Lintermann, Florian Hertweck und Peter Weibel
16.08.2024 - 31.10.2024
https://www.welt-der-versuchungen.de


Swiss Unfiltered, Reithalle, St. Moritz

Reithalle, St. Moritz

»Erfurt Unfiltered – TikTok and the Emerging Face of Culture«
Erfurt Unfiltered is a net-based multiscreen installation showcasing the influence of digital accessibility and questioning its impact on public consciousness, visual aesthetics, and identity structures. In a two days workshop, we researched content of local and international TikTokers and formulated questions which appear in large letters in front of the TikTok videos like:
- How does social media influence language and culture?
- Is a normal summer still good enough for social media?
- When does the hunt for likes end?
- Is AI slowing down or boosting my imagination?
- Am I developing empathy through lip syncing?
- I can scroll, do I really need to get out?

🙏 Christian Hörner, Hendrik Ellinger, Julia Meyer, Marieluise Hörner & Yannick Stock. Thank you for your amazing participation and the creation of such rich content.

EXHIBITION: BE.LIKE.ME. SOCIAL MEDIA AND ME
It is now 20 years since Facebook went online as the first social media channel. Since then, the functionalities and breadth of the social media have mushroomed. Today, the social networks are a firm part of society and Facebook has to vie with many other Apps for users’ attention. In its second exhibition, BE.LIKE.ME. Social media and me, Stiftung Welt der Versuchungen (the World of Temptations Foundation) is highlighting an everyday phenomenon that has long since come to define our lives, our health, and how we interrelate – and can most definitely be addictive. The largely interactive exhibition opens on Thursday, August 15, at 7 p.m. at Anger 28/29 (entrance on Lachsgasse) and will run thru’ October 31.

Since the Noughties, Apps such as Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), Insta and BeReal, Youtube, Snapchat and TikTok have been booming – almost each and every one of us has a profile somewhere, posts items, images, and videos, and frequently comments on those of the others. In the Smartphone age, these media permeate our personal and social lives, our professional and private lives. Irrespective of where, it is always: Now! We use social media to keep in contact and for information, social participation, to search for partners, to consume, to distract ourselves, for stimulation, and not least in order not to miss anything, and to reinforce our self-esteem in the chase for likes.

The one side to all this is that these changed living habits on the one hand offer us opportunities while, on the other, demanding a lot of us mentally, physically and in terms of defending our privacy. The flip side is that they can promote addictive behavior. The exhibition will discuss these aspects from the users’ perspective with all interested parties and with a special focus on young people and families.

Among the wealth of possible topics, the exhibitions will specifically spotlight these issues by drawing on current positions in science and art: What human needs do the social networks address? What are the benefits and the risks? How is my behavior as a user influenced by algorithms? Why do we need likes and why can they put us under pressure? How do they generate FOMO (the Fear of Missing Out) and a fear of rejection? How does the use of social networks impact on our system of rewards: passively as children, and actively as teenagers and adults? Where is point when user behavior tips and becomes addiction? How can I defend myself against this or break with habits?


Exhibited Artwork


Unfiltered – TikTok and the Emerging Face of Culture

Net-Based Multi Screen Installation

With unprecedented and ever increasing access to mobile phones and the internet, digital hierarchies are being broken. Platforms like TikTok are the new town hall, with ‘influence’ no longer restricted to the urban elite. What have been the missing voices within mainstream narratives? Can their messages truly help shape an inclusive, socially conscious future? What impact does positive content more …