Everything’s on Offer

Cat content, communication and canned goods

The internet is the world’s largest virtual supermarket. Everything is available here, but nothing is free. Every offer has its price—even if we don’t always recognize it at first glance.

Whether we’re searching, scrolling, posting, chatting, dating, streaming—(almost) everything happens digitally. Today, the internet has become our constant companion, and a purely offline world is no longer imaginable for many of us. The possibilities are enormous; everything is connected with everything else—and that’s exactly where the challenge lies. We are always just one click away from the next exciting content. And sometimes it’s almost impossible to tell who’s controlling whom anymore: are we controlling the internet—or is the internet controlling us?

Every generation uses the internet differently. Some people use it more for learning or gambling; others for news, recipes and staying in touch with friends. Many people let it wash over them just to relax. In the process, between the endless supply of funny memes and intriguing videos, things also pop up that are anything but cool or entertaining: hate, fake news, deliberate lies—sometimes loud and in your face, sometimes cleverly hidden. This is a challenge for all of us: young and old, frequent users and occasional surfers.

Our exhibition takes a look behind the virtual scenes and poses the questions: How do hate and aggression arise on the internet? Why do lies spread so quickly? What price are we actually paying for all of this? Who is profiting—at whose cost? And what can each of us do to ensure that respect and humanity are not also deleted from the digital product range?

Look closely—because everything is on offer: What will you choose?

A success story and an evergreen: Cats on the internet

Cats are icons of internet culture. Going back to the 1990s, “cat content” photos, videos and memes have shaped digital communication. They are seen as trailblazers of user-generated content and in social media. Cats touch us emotionally and fascinate us with their willfulness, humor and bizarre behavior. It has been scientifically proven that pictures and videos of cats boost our well-being. And they invite us to share them—a recipe for expanding reach. But the function of cat memes is not limited to entertainment: they are also used as humorous reflections of social or political issues. In philosophy, too, cats are seen as models of adaptability and composure. Thus, they are much more than entertainment figures—they reflect our desires, moods and attitudes in the digital age.

Let’s dive in!