A new exhibition in London is proving that conceptual photography can have a seriously funny side. 'Seriously' at Sprüth Magers gallery brings together works from a range of influential artists who use humour, absurdity, and visual puns to tackle weighty subjects, from feminism to the artifice of the art world itself.
The show spans four floors of the gallery, packed with still and moving images that are as thought-provoking as they are amusing. Visitors encounter a diverse array of subjects: clowns, costumes, a dog watching porn, and even a colourless cheeseburger. This is not a sombre retrospective but a lively exploration of how wit and playfulness have pushed photography into new, experimental territory.
Feminist Wit and Visual Puns
A significant strand of the exhibition highlights the confrontational, spicy humour of feminist artists from the 1970s and 1990s. Their work takes direct aim at the stereotypes perpetuated by mass media and advertising.
Here, an androgynous Sarah Lucas is captured brazenly chomping on a banana. A suite of works by Cindy Sherman sharply satirises feminine archetypes from cinema, including a 2018 colour photograph of four heavily made-up figures in tulle gowns sitting incongruously in the sea. In another powerful image, Birgit Jürgenssen wears a ludicrous three-dimensional apron shaped like an oven—a direct revolt against stifling domestic gender norms. These artists willingly made themselves look ridiculous to expose the farcical nature of social codes.
The Body as Absurd Object
The exhibition extends its exploration of silliness to the human form itself, presenting the body as a malleable and often absurd object. Bruce Nauman's Studies for Holograms (a-e) from 1970 shows the artist pulling his face into grotesque, goofy shapes.
In his L'Empereur series, German photographer Thomas Ruff throws himself around a drably coloured room, creating a moment of pure slapstick. This theme of not taking oneself too seriously is central, suggesting that personal and collective pretensions are ripe for comedy.
Iconic Works and The Last Laugh
Among the most famous pieces on display is the late British artist Keith Arnatt's influential 1969 work, Self-Burial. This sequence of nine photographs shows the artist gradually sinking into a hole in the ground until he vanishes. Originally broadcast for a few seconds each evening on German television without explanation, its disturbing resonance remains. As the exhibition notes, if viewers liked the idea of an artist disappearing, the last laugh is on us all, pointing to our shared mortal destination.
Other notable works include John Smith's hilarious 1976 film The Girl Chewing Gum, where a narrator appears to direct action on a London street, and Louise Lawler's audio piece Birdcalls (1972-81), which screams the names of famous male artists in bird calls to critique art world sexism.
However, the exhibition acknowledges that humour is subjective and temporal. Some gags, like Thomas Demand's photo of a slipper under a door, may not raise a universal chuckle, and parodies of other artworks require a specific art historical knowledge to land.
Ultimately, 'Seriously' is less about provoking belly laughs and more about demonstrating humour as a sophisticated tool for critique. It reveals how conceptual artists used playfulness to challenge politics, values, and the very medium of photography, moving it beyond pure documentation. The exhibition runs at Sprüth Magers in London until 31 January.
