Lou Cantor and Eva & Franco Mattes, artist collective
Half Cat / Solo Dancer, 2024

Special editions for Particolare:
Offset lenticular print, edition of 100.

The juxtaposition of Eva & Franco Mattes’ Half Cat and Lou Cantor’s Meridian initiates a profound discourse on the intersections of perception, authenticity, and the role of digital intermediaries in shaping shared experiences. Half Cat presents an image of a two-legged, earless cat strolling down a street, which has permeated internet culture through various memes since its debut in 2010. Initially perceived as the result of a technological mishap —perhaps a Google Street View glitch or a failed panorama shot— the image was later revealed to be a deliberate, human-made alteration, mimicking a machine error. This choice implies that an accidental technological failure can be more captivating and conceptually rich than a meticulously crafted Photoshop edit.
In a similar vein, Lou Cantor’s Meridian draws from the internet phenomenon of ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response), exploring how digital platforms mediate and amplify sensory experiences. Meridian engages with the concept of intersubjectivity, where one individual’s sensory experience is shared and triggered in another through visual and auditory stimuli. The work features slime, a peculiar product designed purely for sensory engagement, offering no inherent satisfaction beyond its tactile and visual appeal.
By examining these two works in tandem, we are invited to consider how the internet, as an intermediary, facilitates the construction of symbolic expressions and shared experiences. The fabricated nature of Half Cat does not diminish its communicative power; rather, it enhances it by adding a layer of commentary on the dynamics of authenticity and perception in digital culture. Both works challenge us to rethink the boundaries between reality and illusion, and the ways in which digital intermediaries shape our understanding of experience and symbolic exchange.

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