Rene Matić

I, RUDE BOY at CCA Berlin marks the first institutional solo exhibition of British artist Rene Matić (b. 1997) in Germany. Matić’s practice spans photography, film, sculpture, and poetry, often converging in an intimate examination of social dynamics concerning race, gender, and class as manifested in interpersonal relationships. This exhibition, featuring new works, aims to explore how bodies and identities clash and overlap in complex ways, and how people find a sense of belonging and dependency in the most unexpected places. Central to Matić’s artistic inquiry is a critical exploration of national identity and its affiliated symbols and expressions. With a new body of work and a publication, Matić wishes to explore how nostalgia often intertwines with grief as individuals long for a past that feels irretrievably lost, evoking a sense of hopelessness about the future. This emotional triad creates a powerful lens through which subcultures can emerge, offering a collective space for us to process these feelings and find solidarity amidst shared despair.