With its inaugural exhibition, Productive Narcissism, 032c Gallery in Berlin positions itself at the volatile juncture of fashion, identity, and contemporary art.
Situated in Berlin’s Charlottenburg district, the gallery opens under the aegis of 032c—the cult media and fashion brand known for its genre-defying sensibility and acute cultural antennae. Co-directed by Claire Koron Elat and Shelly Reich, the gallery inaugurates its program with a dense, psychologically resonant group show that considers how we are continually compelled to redesign ourselves under the gaze of both society and commerce.
Borrowing conceptual scaffolding from Boris Groys’ essay “Self-Design, or Productive Narcissism” and Todd Haynes’ haunting 1995 film Safe, the exhibition probes how identity is not a fixed trait but a malleable, performative construct. In a hyper-stylized ecosystem where the self is both brand and product, the persona becomes a design project endlessly subjected to reinvention. This thematic concern is elegantly mirrored in the participating artists—figures like Amalia Ulman, Ser Serpas, and Jon Rafman—who interrogate the aesthetics of selfhood with sly subversion and vulnerability.
The project is more than a theoretical exercise; it is a critique of the industry itself. 032c Gallery, while structurally aligned with the commercial art market, challenges its boundaries by leveraging its lineage in editorial and fashion. Hugo Comte, who made his name in high fashion photography, debuts his sculptures here, suggesting a deliberate erosion of categorical borders. This hybridity is not opportunistic but symptomatic of the times—where aesthetic practices and market strategies dissolve into one another with unsettling ease.
Beyond the exhibition, 032c Gallery signals a new typology of art space—one embedded within a broader cultural infrastructure. It resists the gentrified white cube model, offering instead a flexible, interdisciplinary platform where commerce and critique can coexist. As Koron Elat notes, “We’re not just replicating what we’ve done with the magazine, we’re evolving.” That evolution feels urgent, and surprisingly authentic, in a climate where brand-driven art initiatives often feel hollow.
