Memes are no laughing matter. Few other visual mediums can compete with their efficacy in landing a message and illustrating the social or political zeitgeist.
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December 19, 2024

Memes are no laughing matter. Few other visual mediums can compete with their efficacy in landing a message and illustrating the social or political zeitgeist. That’s why we take them seriously here at Hyperallergic. So, without further ado, we present our list of the best memes of 2024, from the “Brat Summer” craze to Donald Trump’s bullet-grazed ear. Enjoy it.

In other stories, the Guggenheim Museum’s Deputy Director and Chief Curator Naomi Beckwith is named the artistic director of Documenta 16 in Kassel, Germany. It's a bold choice given the high probability of being singed by the nine circles of hell known as German politics.

Also today: an overview of griffins in art history, Holly Lane’s secular shrines to the environment, and is the New York Times deliberately limiting photos of accused UnitedHealthcare CEO killer Luigi Mangione?

One last thing: It’s not an easy time to be an independent online publication. We need every bit of your support. The best way to do that is by joining as a Hyperallergic Member. It’s more or less what you’d pay for a museum membership, and with access to special events and tours, ad-free reading, and more, we promise to make it just as rewarding.

— Hakim Bishara, Senior Editor

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The Best Memes of 2024

From a chronically moisturized baby hippo to Trump’s bloody ear and the glorification of Luigi Mangione, nothing was off limits this year. | Rhea Nayyar

SPONSORED

Twentieth-Century Nudes from Tate Is on View at the Worcester Art Museum

The nude in a new light: This exhibition pushes the boundaries of an age-old genre with 28 paintings by Vanessa Bell, Lucian Freud, Barkley L. Hendricks, Alice Neel, Pablo Picasso, and more.

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IN THE NEWS

LATEST REVIEWS

Exposing the Dark Underbelly of the American West

Out of Site focuses on the scientific tools used to map the West’s resource-rich landscape, and how those technologies have become forces of destruction. | Renée Reizman

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TCU School of Art’s MA in Art History Is Fully Funded

All admitted students receive a full tuition waiver, a stipend, health insurance, and additional funds for research travel.

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The Emotional Valences of Brutalism

Historically, cinema has invoked the architectural movement as an easy shorthand for villainy. In The Brutalist, though, it embodies a proletarian dream. | Dan Schindel

An Incomplete History of Griffins in Art

Despite its ambition to expand our definition of the creature to include other winged, hybrid beasts, Griffinology is hemmed in by a European framework. | Tamar Boyadjian

Holly Lane’s Elegiac Shrines to the Natural World

The artist evokes a keen awareness of the threats facing the environment by honoring it through opulent, reliquary-style frames and delicate paintings. | John Seed

IN MEMORIAM

Jodhaiya Bai Baiga (c. 1939–2024)
Indian painter and sculptor of the Baiga ethnic group  | Hindu

Mark Braunias (1955–2024)
New Zealander abstract painter | New Zealand Herald

Steven Englander (1961–2024)
Director of Lower East Side nonprofit ABC No Rio | Hyperallergic

Jean Adamson (1928–2024)
Children’s books illustrator | Times

Douglas Gorney (1961–2024)
San Francisco painter and printmaker | Richmond Sunset News

Yasuomi “Hashi” Hashimura (1945–2024)
Japanese-American photographer | Tokyo Weekender

William “Bill” J. Hennessy, Jr. (1957–2024)
Courtroom and congressional sketch artist | Daily Cartoonist

Lorraine O’Grady (1934–2024)
Conceptual artist and critic | Hyperallergic

Joseph Rykwert (1926–2024)
Architecture scholar | RIBA Journal

Macoto Takahashi (1934–2024)
Pioneering Japanese shojo manga artist | Comic Book

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