11/02/2026
We have always celebrated International Women's Day.
This year we will be doing so in collaboration with MDS Studio & Gallery .
As International Women’s Day approaches, I am proud to present 'Things That Men Have Said to Me Instead of Hello' by artist Eli Trier (aka Zuzu) .
This body of work began with screenshots, messages sent to Eli during a period of online dating in her mid-thirties. They are graphic, entitled and simply put- creepy.
Openers, actually, that were never greetings at all.
Years later, those saved fragments became this collection.
The intention is not to demonize men or position women as saints. It is to open the floor to something far more complex: the patriarchal waters we are all swimming in and the systems we perpetuate.
What strikes me most about this exhibition is not shock value. It is recognition.
When women encounter this work, there is an immediate understanding which is often followed by a story of their own.
When men encounter it, the reactions range from genuine horror to distant abstraction — to, at times, uncomfortable defensiveness and surprisingly even understanding.
That spectrum is part of the work.
This exhibition is about naming what has been normalized.
It is about how r**e culture, the male gaze, and beauty standards are not abstract theories but lived experiences.
Both Eli and I are international women. We are artists. We are entrepreneurs. We have built our work across borders, in industries and systems that were not necessarily designed with us in mind.
This exhibition and the conversations it invites, truly embodies the spirit of International Women’s Day through visibility, dialogue, accountability, and agency.
We cannot shift culture if we cannot see it clearly.
To mark International Women’s Day, we are hosting:
March 7 (13:30- 15:30- MDS Studio, Birkegade 7, 2200)– A participatory mixed media and painting workshop inviting you to create artwork in response to your own experiences.
March 8 (2:30–5:00 PM) – A live Q&A conversation with Eli Trier (location TBA)
Details and registration links are below.
We look forward to welcoming you into this conversation.
Sign up here for the workshop on March 7th ➡️
https://mdsstudiogallery.ticketbutler.io/en/e/things-men-have-said-to-me-workshop/
Things Men Have Said to Me Instead Of Hello is showing until March 8th at MDS Studio & Gallery