Meme phenomenon Sveamaus: a pointed mix of zeitgeist and art. Soon she will be able to write where and what she wants.
From phantom to phenomenon: Countless social media accounts are reaping short-term hype. But Sveamaus is real. A pointed mix of zeitgeist and art made the Cologne-based artist the biggest digital consensus since the Twitter slogan machine El Hotzo. Sveamaus, whose real name is Svea Mausolf, is simply unavoidable this year, even if her kingdom is “only” based on the Internet. It’s just a matter of time before the big book publishers, comedy editors and the feuilleton have to be explained again what memes are and then audition for that ominous Sveamaus. Actually, the time has already come, because the artist, who was born in Frankfurt an der Oder, has already left the critical reach behind. On Instagram, her followers are in the six-figure range, exponential growth is her thing.
Complex foreshortening
Recently it actually happened incredibly fast, a year ago it was just one fun profile among many, today it is an established pop spectacle on the Internet. But it certainly didn’t come out of nowhere. Since then, Sveamaus has been publishing ten photos almost every day, complete with provocative lines that manage to get to the heart of the collective’s state of mind in just a few words. Everything turns faster: In order to nail German conditions, in 2023 you no longer need Fassbinder and the new German author film, but so-called memes, i.e. the mass medium of the post-factual world. At Sveamaus, in addition to the address, they also stand out from the other actors with their unmistakable writing – and they spread thousands of times a day, Schnellballsystem. Whether it’s about smoldering conflicts between generations, toxic masculinity or especially about lesbian visibility – with its minimalistic and multi-layered abridgement, Sveamaus hits a nerve.
“It’s more situations and incidents that I make fun of, not the people themselves”
She doesn’t even omit the topic of music: Helene Fischer, GZUZ, Sarah Connor, Rammstein… countless pop acts are exposed by Sveamaus in half sentences or immediately torn apart. But with all the acid that Sveamaus touches so offensively, you can always feel the humanistic ground on which all this is happening. She also has sympathies for the characters used in her pictures: “It’s more situations and occurrences that I make fun of, not the people themselves,” says the three-year-old in an interview, reminiscent of the former hip-hop maxim “Don ‘t hate the player, hate the game”.
Of course, the – at least problematic – “game” also includes the Instagram platform, from which her own fame originated. Sveamaus himself is always in trouble there, due to reports from right-wing accounts or the use of revealing language. Everything covered by artistic freedom? Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that. “I just want to be able to write ‘pussy’ without being blocked for it right away,” states Sveamaus. Well, she won’t be able to overcome the Meta group, which operates Instagram and Facebook, but she has long since outgrown it with her art. The tear-off calendar that is now appearing “Yes, boss, it’s my turn” is just the beginning, because Sveamaus will soon be able to write where and what she wants – and that’s something to look forward to.