An exhibition of conceptual photography that has a sense of humour? Seriously? Sprüth Mager’s new group show of that title makes its case over four floors jammed with still and moving images of clowns, costumes, Star Wars figurines, dogs watching porn, a colourless cheeseburger, and artists running over a carton of milk.
I’m absorbed by one of the most recent works in the show, Martine Syms’ She Mad: The Non-Hero, a conceptual TikTok tale inspired by Lil Nas X’s Life Story series from 2021. Borrowing the rapper’s structure and tropes, Syms performs convincingly as a rising star of the arts scene who shares her struggles with health, depression and loneliness. It’s a punchy satire of social media mores that debunks ideas about success.
