Future Art Ecosystems 2: Art x Metaverse

Art x Metaverse, the second Future Art Ecosystems briefing from Serpentine, published in 2021.

Its starting point is the metaverse, understood as a parallel online world that never switches off, and the change this brings to ideas of digital systems and of being physically present. The briefing asks what twenty-first-century cultural infrastructure would need in order to influence where that world goes. It also draws on the pandemic years, looking at the difficulties and openings institutions met when virtual environments became a matter of public space and accountability.

Serpentine gathered views from more than fifty people and organisations working in art, cinema, games, technology and the wider creative sector. Contributors include the artists Keiken, Joey Holder, Larry Achiampong, Rindon Johnson, David Blandy and Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley, alongside Jo Twist of UKIE, Trevor McFedries of Brud, Andie Nordgren of Unity, Jay-Ann Lopez of Black Girl Gamers and Gabrielle Jenks of Manchester International Festival.

Serpentine Galleries, 2021. 9 x 13.5 cm.