In ‘Strange Rules,’ an Epic Show with a Bold Vision For What Counts as Art
“Strange Rules,” an exhibition at Venice’s Palazzo Diedo, presents a curatorial argument about how art should be defined amid technologies such as blockchain and generative AI. Curated by Mat Dryhurst, Holly Herndon, and Hans Ulrich Obrist with Adriana Rispoli, the show groups disparate works—ranging from biologist Michael Levin’s Double-Headed Planaria to Trevor Paglen’s Voyager (2026), described as a self-guided meditation—under the label “Protocol Art.” The exhibition text defines Protocol Art as a practice engaging the underlying rules that shape cultural production and perception in the digital age, including algorithms, AI models, platforms, infrastructure, and social conventions, asserting that “the protocol is the art.” Palazzo Diedo, recently renovated and run by Berggruen Arts & Culture, is positioned as a future center for further research and exhibitions on this approach.
From This Briefing
This story was covered in Heists and Homecomings: Art’s High-Stakes Week