CATS ARE TAKING OVER is the inaugural exhibition of Vila Catena’s contemporary art pavilion, marking the beginning of a new art space in Bucharest that aims to cultivate a warm and accessible approach to experiencing art. Through this joint initiative, Sandwich and the Fildas Art Foundation, via the Catena for Art program, open a new and invigorating dialogue between the public and contemporary art. 

Cats Are Taking Over explores the universe of the most charismatic domestic felines, often considered too trivial for “serious” art, reclaiming their place in contemporary creation. From apartment companion to cultural icon, from mystical symbol to mundane presence—who better to star in an exhibition about the contrasts of the present moment? Through painting, ceramics, sculpture, conceptual works, immersive installations, audio pieces, and inflatable sculptures, the show offers a layered perspective on current challenges, using the cat as a collective catalyst. The leader cat, the fetish cat, the totem cat, the cat as feminist icon, the cat as anatomical subject, the cat as institutional critic, the cat as medicine, the cat as Dacian relic, and the cat as sacred entity.

Open and accessible, affectionate and tender, while still considered cruel and ferocious by some, the simple cat's complexity is more than what it leads us to believe through their infinite pool of Insta reels. And so is this exhibition. 

Sandwich would like to thank all of the artists who have generously accepted to take part in this cuddly, furry, purring art survey.

The project partners are Institutul Francez, Neurohope, Krupa Foundation, Senso Arte.