Statement:

The National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens (EMΣT) in Greece will present  Shitty Disco,  a solo exhibition of paintings and animations by Tala Madani as part of the museum’s exhibition cycle, What If Women Ruled the World?///

This four-part series is exclusively dedicated to the work of women artists or artists who identify as female. Initiated by EMΣT artistic director Katerina Gregos and inspired by Yael Bartana’s 2017 neon work of the same name, this cycle of exhibitions is based on an often-repeated hypothetical question: What would happen if governance was characterized by female traits?

Madani’s paintings and animations bring together wide-ranging modes of critique, prompting reflection on gender, political authority, and questions of who and what gets represented in art.

She uses humor not only to upend social mores, but also to open up dialogue about cultural forms that too often remain in the background of collective awareness. In so doing, Madani also upsets formal and art historical conventions, openly embracing caricature, gags, and disarming simplicity as she develops and hones the conceptual underpinnings of each body of work.

Shitty Disco will include paintings from Madani’s monumental Cloud Mommy series, among others, and will debut a site-specific installation produced on the occasion of this exhibition.