This document defines memes as ideas or styles that spread from person to person within a culture. Internet memes specifically spread online through sharing images with text. Popular examples of internet memes mentioned include Gangnam Style, Harlem Shake, and image macros pairing photos with text. The document suggests that museums could capitalize on memes' viral nature by creating meme exhibits that remix popular internet memes with works in their collections and share the results online.

1. Memes
and
Museums

2. What
is
a
meme?
A
meme
is
"an
idea,
behavior,
or
style
that
spreads
from
person
to
person
within
a
culture.”
A
meme
acts
as
a
unit
for
carrying
cultural
ideas,
symbols,
or
prac<ces
that
can
be
transmi=ed
from
one
mind
to
another
through
wri<ng,
speech,
gestures,
rituals,
or
other
imitable
phenomena.
An
Internet
meme
is
a
concept
that
spreads
from
person
to
person
via
the
Internet.
The
word
meme
was
coined
by
Richard
Dawkins
in
his
1976
book
The
Selfish
Gene,
as
an
a=empt
to
explain
the
way
cultural
informa<on
spreads;
internet
memes
are
a
subset
of
this,
specific
to
the
culture
and
environment
of
the
internet.
(Wikipedia,
accessed
May
7,
2013)

3. Let’s
look
at
some
examples…

4. Gangnam
Style
is
a
meme.
A
search
for
Gangnam
style
on
YouTube
gets
4,970,000
results
h=p://theweek.com/ar<cle/index/233651/gangnam-­‐style-­‐the-­‐8-­‐best-­‐parodies-­‐of-­‐the-­‐viral-­‐video

5. Harlem
Shake
is
a
meme.
A
search
for
Harlem
shake
on
YouTube
gets
6,750,000
results
h=p://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hpEnLtqUDg

6. Vadering
is
a
meme
h=p://www.gadgetreview.com/2013/04/15-­‐vadering-­‐pics-­‐george-­‐lucas-­‐would-­‐be-­‐proud-­‐of.html

7. A
popular
type
of
internet
meme
includes
text
superimposed
on
an
image,
since
this
type
of
content
is
easily
shared
through
social
media.
“Hey
Girl”
is
a
meme
about
Ryan
Gosling
h=p://knowyourmeme.com/memes/people/ryan-­‐gosling

8. There
was
even
a
museum-­‐themed
“Hey
Girl”
h=p://museumheygirl.tumblr.com

9. Grumpy
cat
is
a
meme
h=p://www.complex.com/art-­‐design/2013/03/the-­‐50-­‐funniest-­‐grumpy-­‐cat-­‐memes/

10. “Said
no
one
ever”
is
a
meme
h=p://knowyourmeme.com/memes/said-­‐no-­‐one-­‐ever

11. “Success
Kid”
is
a
meme
h=p://knowyourmeme.com/memes/success-­‐kid-­‐i-­‐hate-­‐sandcastles

12. Original
Media
Compressed
into
Image
+
text
for
easy
sharing
Remixed
Remixed
again!
Original
clip
from
The
Lord
of
the
Rings:
h=p://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r21CMDyPuGo
Memes
can
be
inspired
by
movies,
TV
shows,
and
commercials

13. Original
Media
Compressed
into
Image
+
text
for
easy
sharing
Remixed
Remixed
again!
Original
clip
from
the
commercial
for
Dos
Equis:
h=p://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U18VkI0uDxE
“I
don't
always
drink
beer,
but
when
I
do,
I
prefer
Dos
Equis.”

14. We
should
capitalize
on
the
popularity
and
viral
nature
of
these
memes.
No
art
museums
are
doing
this
yet
(that
I
can
find).
Some
ideas…

22. Notes:
We
would
only
use
public
domain
or
copyright
unrestricted
images
The
image
info
and
URL
are
embedded
on
the
image
so
they
do
not
get
lost
when
shared