Gallery Weekend Berlin! Charades by Marianna Simnett

Get ready to immerse yourself in the boundary-defying world of British-Croatian artist Marianna Simnett, as SOCIÉTÉ unveils her latest solo exhibition, Charades, coinciding with Gallery Weekend Berlin from May 1 to June 28, 2025. This marks Simnett’s second collaboration with the gallery, and she’s pulling out all the stops with a captivating blend of video, painting, and sculpture.

Charades dives into the intricate dance between individual expression and communal behaviour, questioning societal norms through an imaginative lens of masquerade, power dynamics, and ritualistic practices. With a flair for the flamboyant and the macabre, Simnett’s works deliver an audacious commentary on the fluidity of self-presentation, audibly cracking the heavy-handed expectations placed upon us.

@mariannasimnett
@societeberlin @galleryweekendberlin

Marianna Simnett’s Charades: A Dazzling Exploration of Power and Identity

At the heart of this exploration lies Simnett’s video piece, Leda Was a Swan, which twists and transforms ancient mythology to dissect themes of power, desire, and identity. Drawing inspiration from a recently discovered fresco in Pompeii, Simnett reframes the tragic tale of Leda and Zeus, portraying Leda not merely as a victim but as a complex agent of her narrative. In a striking and surreal twist, Zeus is reduced to a puppet, animated by Leda’s hand—an unsettling blend of empowerment and subjugation further augmented by the artist’s custom AI-generated imagery.

The theme of power’s mutability resonates throughout the exhibition, particularly evident in Simnett’s sculptural works, where iconic symbols are glamorously reimagined. Feminine beauty teeters on the edge of grotesque, while sacred rites of passage are depicted as flamboyant finger puppetry. Through this lens, Simnett cleverly satirises the reliquary, traditionally sacred, and exposes the ambivalence and performativity inherent in our veneration of power.

The exhibition also features a nod to the merkin, that historical—and often controversial—form of pubic adornment, woven into the costuming for Leda Was a Swan. This element prompts reflection on gender and sexuality, flitting between protection and exhibitionism; it becomes a subject of both concealment and display.

A haunting and dreamlike landscape emerges in a new series of oil paintings, where the intimacy of personal rituals collides with grand spectacle. Beneath the surface of these contrasting scenes lies a choreography of dominance and submission, captured in the vulnerabilities of performance and tradition—a reflection of the precarious emotional landscape we all traverse.

The title Charades alludes to the classic game where gestures transcend words, yet it holds a deeper significance, hinting at the façade, the mockery, and the often insidious performances we navigate in daily life. Within Simnett’s oeuvre, these layers of playful artifice morph into potent explorations of identity, revealing just how thin the line can be between innocent games and troubling performances.

Prepare for a thought-provoking journey—one that promises to be as entertaining as it is unsettling—at one of Berlin’s most anticipated exhibitions of the season.

Charades by Marianna Simnett will be on view at SOCIÉTÉ from May 2 – June 28, 2025.
Address: Wielandstraße 26 10707 Berlin

Opening Reception
May 1 | 6 – 8 pm
Gallery Weekend Berlin
May 2 | 11 – 9 pm
May 3 | 11 – 7 pm
May 4 | 11 – 6 pm

General Opening Hours
Monday – Saturday | 10 am – 6 pm
Closed on Sundays

About Marianna Simnett:
Marianna Simnett (b. 1986, London) lives and works in Berlin and New York. Her work was part of Manifesta 15, Barcelona and her solo exhibition WINNER was recently on view at Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin. Simnett’s first work for the stage, entitled GORGON, was commissioned by LAS Art Foundation and premiered at HAU 2, Berlin in 2023. Her work, The Severed Tai,l was presented at the 59th Venice Biennale: The Milk of Dreams and at the 66th BFI London Film Festival, British Film Institute, London. Simnett has had solo exhibitions internationally at venues including City Gallery Wellington, Wellington; Copenhagen Contemporary, Copenhagen; MA, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane; Frans Hals
Museum, Haarlem; Kunsthalle Zürich, Zürich; MMK, Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt; The New
Museum, New York; and Zabludowicz Collection, London.

About SOCIÉTÉ:
SOCIÉTÉ is a Berlin-based contemporary art gallery with a global reach. The gallery’s bold curatorial approach plays a pivotal role in advancing its artists’ visions, supporting major museum exhibitions, biennials, and acquisitions by leading institutional collections worldwide. Operating in both the primary and secondary markets, SOCIÉTÉ provides curated advisory services to select clients.

Beyond its exhibitions, the gallery’s publishing initiative, EDITION SOCIÉTÉ, collaborates with prominent writers and graphic designers to produce artist books, catalogues, and, more recently, high-end artist editions. SOCIÉTÉ is an active presence at major international art fairs, including Art Basel, Art Basel Paris, Art Basel Miami Beach, Frieze New York, Frieze London, ARCOmadrid, and Gallery Weekend Berlin.