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2015: Write it down as the year things that maybe-definitely do not deserve museum exhibits dedicated to them got museum exhibits dedicated to them. First there was the movie Space Jam, then there was the Tanya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan scandal of 1994, which even got its own museum, and now, Internet videos of cats.
On August 7th, the Museum of the Moving Image will debut "How Cats Took Over the Internet," an exhibit that will "take a critical look at the phenomenon of cats online and how they have transfixed a generation of web users."
What does that mean in terms of the actual exhibit? According to the press release, it'll be kind of similar to the average midday cat video boredom binge: Visitors can expect to gaze upon a wide selection of GIFs, images, and videos "presented through the critical lens of concepts like anthropomorphism and the aesthetics of cuteness." There'll also be a timeline of Internet cat moments, a world map of international cat memes, an an interactive station where you can submit your own would-be Internet-famous cat to the exhibit.
And in the screening room next door, there'll be a continuous loop of "significant cat videos" playing at all times, which is where you can find us, slack-jawed and giggling, until the exhibit closes on January 31st, 2016.