NEW YORK, NY.- That cats “rule the Internet” is an undisputed truism. Whether it be lolcats, Caturday, Lil Bub, or other Internet cat sensations, images and videos of felines have delighted many millions online. Beginning Friday, August 7, 2015, Museum of the Moving Image presents How Cats Took Over the Internet, an exhibition that takes a critical look at the phenomenon of cats online and how they have transfixed a generation of web users. The exhibition is on view through January 31, 2016 and it's accompanied by screenings and live events.

Associate Curator of Digital Media Jason Eppink, who organized the exhibition, stated “The Internet’s collective obsession with cats offers a window into the way we understand ourselves. This exhibition examines the many reasons for this deceptively frivolous phenomenon and highlights the new ways we’re creating, consuming, and sharing culture.”

Located in the Museum’s amphitheater gallery, How Cats Took Over the Internet features a selection of Internet cat videos, GIFs, and images, presented through the critical lens of concepts like anthropomorphism and the aesthetics of cuteness, the framework of the Bored at Work Network, and the rise of user-generated content. A multimedia timeline captures significant moments of cats online, appended with a historical look at the representation of cats in photographs, film, and other visual media. Interactive stations allow visitors to experiment with creating their own lolcats and to contribute their favorite cat photos, GIFs, and videos to the exhibition. In addition, the exhibition includes a world map of international animal memes by The Civic Beat, a collective of researchers and writers focused on civic technology. In the adjacent video screening amphitheater, a selection of significant cat videos, organized by Will Braden, curator of the Internet Cat Video Festival (based at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis), is also shown, projected in a continuous loop. Among the related events is The Cat-vant Garde Film Show, on Saturday, October 10 in the Sumner M. Redstone Theater. In the spirit of the first avant-garde cat film festival, Intercat, which took place in 1969—long before cats took over the Internet—this program focuses on how cats inspired some of the masters of experimental film, including Stan Brakhage (Nightcats, Cat’s Cradle), Carolee Schneemann (Kitsch’s Last Meal), Joyce Weiland (Catfood), Pola Chapelle (How to Draw a Cat), and more. Other programs will be announced as they are confirmed.