A song by an 80’s band (Whip it, Devo), inspired by a 70’s novel (Gravity’s Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon) put in focus the collapse of a society that, dumbed down in a delirium of overconsumption and information overload, worships the almost cult-like allegiances of technology, through which power is manifested, extended and normalized. And if these were for their time merely oddities of the times, nowadays we are discussing the consequences of this interaction and seeking ways of reconciling, if not revising, our relationship with technology.

The exhibition “Technofetishism: whip it into shape” presented at MOMus-Piramatic Arts Centre (Warehouse B1, Pier A, Port of Thessaloniki) in Thessaloniki, from 21 March to 31 August 2025, summarizes and explores the fetishization of technology in contemporary techno-capitalist society, where technological objects have been transformed into sources of erotic stimulation, substitutes for desires and cult fetishes. The works in the exhibition function as a critical reflection on the way in which technology mediates – and sometimes distorts – our perception of intimacy, eroticism, desire and communication, our very identity, blurring the boundaries between freedom, compulsion and constraint.

Emphasis is placed on the relations of power and dependency that arise between the human body and technological means, which now function as extensions of the body, with these relations being distinct and directly linked to consumption and control.

The technological ecstasy of the age has also highlighted contemporary practices of self-portrayal and gender representations, imposing distorted notions of beauty and creating distorted standards. Through their works, the artists raise the question: are we, in fact, living the ultimate satisfaction of a techno-fetishist society?

Curated by Irini Papakonstantinou, Art Historian, Curator of the MOMus- Experimental Arts Centre

Artists / Female Artists: Maria Adelman, Anna Vasov, Vasilis Vlastaras, Maria Vozali, Maria Vozali, Maria Glyka, Thomas Diafas, Carla Gannis, Faith Holland, Kalos&Klio, Casey Kauffmann, Echo Can Luo, Rosa Menkman, Zisis Bliatkas, Eva Papamargargariti, Moises Sanabria in collaboration with Tom Galle and John Yuyi, Super G (Giorgos Ouzounis), Theo Triantaphyllides, Emilio Vavarella