Mimi Ọnụọha's Thought-Provoking 'Soft Zeros' Exhibition at Secession

Mimi Ọnụọha's exhibition 'Soft Zeros' investigates the unreliability of archives and the instability of knowledge in an age of hypervisibility. It explores how algorithms, historical erasure, and collective forgetting shape what is perceived as absent or insignificant.

In 'Soft Zeros,' Mimi Ọnụọha delves into the unreliability of archives and the instability of knowledge, particularly how algorithmic bias, historical repression, and collective forgetting render certain aspects of reality invisible or insignificant. The exhibition challenges the notion that a lack of data equates to an absence of existence, using the concept of a 'soft zero' as a metaphor for power and invisibility within data systems. The exhibition's centerpiece is the docufictional film 'Ground Truths' (2025), which chronicles the artist's attempt to train a machine learning model to identify potential mass graves in Texas. This experiment evolves into a profound reflection on the limits of collective memory, prompting questions about what we document, recall, and deliberately overlook. The work specifically addresses the 'Sugar Land 95,' the remains of 95 Black individuals discovered during construction in Sugar Land, Texas, whose existence was largely unrecorded due to the Convict-Leasing System. Ọnụọha uses this case to illuminate the continuity between slavery and the contemporary prison industrial complex, highlighting how institutional systems can produce erasure and how buried histories can resurface. Other works in the exhibition, such as 'everything you bury will come back up again' and 'we don’t talk about that,' further explore themes of digging, uncovering, and the deliberate avoidance of uncomfortable truths. Through her research-based practice, Ọnụọha prompts viewers to consider what forms of knowledge are withheld in an era of disinformation and what role we play in this collective forgetting, asserting that 'working through the present means learning to read what is seemingly not there.'

Information regarding tickets can be found on the Secession website, and booking is available through the provided link to Eventjet. Specific pricing or booking requirements are not detailed on this page, directing visitors to the official ticketing portal for further details. Visitors should refer to the website for current admission information and any associated booking procedures for the exhibition. General opening hours for today are listed as open, with Di-So / 10 AM - 6 PM being the standard exhibition hours. However, for the most accurate and up-to-date ticketing information, it is recommended to consult the linked ticketing platform directly. The exhibition dates are from November 29, 2025, to February 22, 2026.