TRANSFER is pleased to present the first solo exhibition from Zardulu the Mythmaker, “Triconis Aeternis: Rites and Mysteries.” The exhibition will include a series of works encompassing installation, drawings, a book of Zardulism (sharing the exhibition’s title), and an online exhibition of works in the show.

For centuries, tricksters have acted as the masters of the in-between, weaving illusions from liminal spaces. Already, Zardulu has emerged as the defining trickster of the 21st century. Her practice stems from a broadened conceptual space between truth and lies. Her myths are dreams we dream together—only possible in this era of “fake news.” Her activity spurs us to constantly question what is real, what is natural, and what can be trusted.

To be aware of Zardulu is to be forever changed.

Zardulu’s artworks are viral hoaxes. She became embedded in the mythology of contemporary New York in 2016, after the media connected her to the meme supernova known as “pizza rat.” (Although Zardulu integrated herself into the story, she has never actually claimed authorship.) Her public pieces are tripartite, consisting of a physical trigger or event, the resulting media coverage, and its rampant spread online. Threads of her encoded narrative have already been transmitted through media outlets as classical as National Geographic, The New York Times and Washington Post, and as cutting-edge as the Reply All podcast and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

And yet, despite the cult-like following stoked by blanket transmedia coverage, the studio remains shrouded in mystery.

Each of Zardulu’s fabricated media pieces is a crucible—a ritual adventure in a greater journey—steeped in symbolic language. Yet she also further explores each in her paintings, sketches, and encoded writings, which will be made available for the first time through TRANSFER.

A limited edition artist book from Zardulu accompanies the exhibition, also titled Triconis Aeternis: Rites and Mysteries. The artist describes it as “a communion with the spirit of disruptive imagination.” The exhibition opens with a reception with the artist on Thursday, October 4th from 6-9PM ON CANAL, “a district for new ideas” in SoHo, presented by Wallplay.

An inventory of work from Triconis Aeternis: Rites and Mysteries is available from the gallery. Please inquire with the director@transfergallery.com to request information.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

For decades, Zardulu the Mythmaker has been creating works that are now inextricably intertwined in cultural narratives the world over. The New York Times writes that, “Unlike most artists, Zardulu’s art seems to seek not recognition but erasure. Her art succeeds only to the extent that her hand is unseen.” Zardulu has forged her unique practice through a lifetime spent seeking the secret teachings of ancient times, from the heart of modern religions, to the sacred mysteries of the Mycenaeans, Egyptians, Phrygians, and Thracians, to truths of the universe that have yet to be recorded by humanity. Similar to Micaiah, Abraham, Daniel, and Ezekiel—the dreaming prophets of the Bible—it is through her own dreams that Zardulu interacts with the timeless wonders of these symbolic stories: heroes, divine beings, sacred objects, and hallowed locations where old stories are clarified and new chapters are written.

Zardulu’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Washington Post, National Geographic, The Art Newspaper, artnet News, the Reply All podcast, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. She has contributed to Mental Floss, Atlas Obscura, and The Art Newspaper. Her solo exhibition at TRANSFER is her gallery debut.

ABOUT THE GALLERY

TRANSFER is an experimental exhibition space founded in 2013 to support artists working with computer-based practices to realize aggressive solo installations in the gallery. TRANSFER represents challenging variable media artworks, and experiments with new exhibition formats, exhibiting internationally at art fairs, institutions, pop-ups and in the gallery, with a focus on women who are refiguring technology.