The word “technology” is rooted in the ancient Greek Greek τέχνη, techne, which can be translated as “art, skill, craft.” Many modern definitions, such as the following one from Cambridge, would agree that today the noun means “(the study and knowledge of) the practical, especially industrial, use of scientific discoveries.” If we follow the line of technology through time, we can trace a line through many innovations that have changed how people see the world. For instance, the Claude glass was popular amongst British artists and travellers in the mid 18th century. It was a pocket mirror that the holder would hold up to see the landscape reflected – and beautified – behind them. It was “like having a portable Claude Lorrain in your pocket, ready to transform any jumble of trees and rocks into a vision of painterly charm.” There are other advances, such as the Camera obscura, the iPhone and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Artists through the ages have used these objects and ideas as tools to comment on contemporary life. Today, we bring you a selection of exhibitions that blend art and technology, from pre-internet pieces to robotic creations.
Electric Dreams: Art and Technology Before the Internet | Tate Modern | Until 1 June 2025
From the birth of op art to the dawn of the internet age, artists have found new ways to engage the senses and play with our perception. Electric Dreams celebrates the early innovators of optical, kinetic, programmed and digital art, who pioneered a new era of immersive installations and automatically-generated works. This major exhibition brings together groundbreaking works by a wide range of international artists, such as Alberto Biasi, Liliane Lijn, Suzanne Treister and Otto Piene. Experience the environments they created in the 1950s and 60s, built using mathematical principles, motorised components and new processes. See how radical creatives embraced the birth of digital technology in the 1970s and 1980s, experimenting with machine-made art and early home computing systems.
Message from Our Planet: Digital Art from the Thoma Collection | MOCA | Until 29 December
Message from Our Planet brings together 19 software, video, and light-technology artworks from 17 international practitoners working at the forefront of digital and electronic art. The exhibition proposes that media technologies, from vintage devices to cutting-edge digital algorithms, offer distinct ways for artists to communicate with future generations. Themed like a global time capsule, the group of artworks reflect the artefacts and ambitions of contemporary life. The lineup includes well-known works from big names. On display is Jenny Holzer’s Red Tilt, which shows six black beams covered in witty and provocative slogans. In red, the illumination reads: “You Are a Good New One.” Elsewhere, are Robert Wilson’s LADY GAGA portraits, which first premiered at the Louvre in 2013 and were inspired by the gallery’s collection.
A Journey Through Art & Technology | Scorpius Bodrum | 5-8 September
Encounters is a summer arts and cultural programme organised by Scorpios, the renowned beach concept and creative gathering place, and the House of Fine Art (HOFA) Gallery, London. This year marks its second edition, following on from the success of Refik Anadol’s display in 2023. In tandem with the opening of Scorpios’ new beachfront location in Bodrum, Turkey, is the unveiling of this year’s theme: A Journey Through Art & Technology. The headlining artists are experimental studio Random International (22-25 August) – who will present the interactive digital sculpture When Tomorrow Comes – and Sougwen 愫君 Chung (5-8 September), who will perform a live showcase with their robotic system D.O.U.G. (Drawing Operations Unit Generation) as well as debut their new artworks Genesis II: Body Machine.
Bright Signs: Spotlight on Video Art | Art Gallery of Ontario | Until 14 October
Art Gallery of Ontario spotlights 11 large-scale works that showcase the myriad ways artists create powerful multi-sensory experiences using light, sound and moving images. On display are projects from well-known names, including Jenny Holzer, Kahlil Joseph and Sarah Sze. Curator Debbie Johnsen aptly states: “Harnessing state-of-the-art technology, video art has the capacity to make moments in time – be they real or imaginary, past or present – feel startlingly immediate. In doing so, these artworks raise powerful questions about memory, history and visibility.” This is an exhibition that brings together ground-breaking artwork from practitioners who are using the medium to share important stories and create immersive experiences – that will stay with audiences long after they have left the gallery.
Missing Mirror: Photography Through the Lens of AI | FOAM | Until 11 September
In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has made a profound big impact in the world of photography. In the wake of Boris Eldagsen’s AI image winning at the Sony World Photography Award 2023, it is clear that we live in times where the line between artificiality and reality is blurrier than ever. It is undeniable: AI is changing the way we make and see images. Now, Foam, Amsterdam, explores the intersections between art, society and technology in a new multidimensional project, Photography Through the Lens of AI. A group exhibition, Missing Mirror, highlights how recent AI advancements impact our relationship with images, ourselves and our perception of reality. Alongside this show, is a solo exhibition by Paolo Cirio (AI Attacks), a thematic issue of Foam Magazine and a presentation of Ctrl.Alt.Img in collaboration with affect lab.
Image Credits:
- Digital video (with sound); Jenny Holzer, Red Tilt, 2002. Custom electronics (silent), double-sided light-emitting diode signs with Taitron diodes, stainless steel housings and bezels.
- Otto Piene, Light Room (Jena), 2005 / 2017, installation view, Atkinson Museum, Porto 2023. © Otto Piene Estate / DACS 2024. Photo Atkinson Museum.
- Digital video (with sound); Jenny Holzer, Red Tilt, 2002. Custom electronics (silent), double-sided light-emitting diode signs with Taitron diodes, stainless steel housings and bezels.
- Sougwen Chung, Wave Film (Sven Gutjahr).
- Theaster Gates. Baby Neon, 2016. Bent glass neon tubing, electrical transformer, 91.4 x 45.7cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Purchased with funds from the Modern and Contemporary Curatorial Committee, the Michael and Diana Hasley Fund, the Molly Gilmour Fund, the Janet and Michael Scott Fund, the David Yuile and Mary Elizabeth Hodgson Fund, the Ivey Foundation Contemporary Art. © Theaster Gates. 2017/32.
- Vistas #22, 2020 © Brea Souders.