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Volume 15
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Arts, Volume 15, Issue 1 (January 2026) – 24 articles

Cover Story (view full-size image): Experimental prints made by Jackson Pollock in Stanley William Hayter’s Atelier 17 in 1944-45 were crucial to the evolution of his modernist style. As Hayter had said, "Pollock always claimed that he had two masters, Benton and me." This article examines a 1944-45 engraving in which Pollock inscribed the letters ART, revealing the gendered themes and experimental techniques that set the basis for Pollock’s continued exploration of his art as erotic dialogue. Absorbing Hayter’s technical understanding of the three-dimensionality of an engraved line as it produced and moved through “the space of the imagination,” Pollock succeeded in mediating between male and female tensions, stated in underlying imagery, as he began in ART to generate his abstract and unify all-over linear webs, culminating in works such as Autumn Rhythm 1950. View this paper
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17 pages, 1065 KB  
Article
It’s a Toyland!: Examining the Science Experience in Interactive Science Galleries
by Akvile Terminaite
Arts 2026, 15(1), 24; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010024 - 21 Jan 2026
Viewed by 258
Abstract
Interactive science galleries have transformed how the public engages with science, shifting from object-centred displays to immersive, design-led experiences. This study situates these changes within broader cultural and economic contexts, exploring how design mediates our understanding of science and reflects neoliberal and experiential [...] Read more.
Interactive science galleries have transformed how the public engages with science, shifting from object-centred displays to immersive, design-led experiences. This study situates these changes within broader cultural and economic contexts, exploring how design mediates our understanding of science and reflects neoliberal and experiential values. Using archival research, qualitative interviews with museum professionals, and reflective practice, the research examines the evolution of interactive science spaces at the Science Museum in London—The Children’s Gallery, Launch Pad, and Wonderlab. The findings reveal that exhibition design increasingly prioritises entertainment, immersion, and pleasure, aligning with the rise in the experience economy and the influence of corporate models such as Disneyland. While such strategies enhance visitor engagement and accessibility, they risk simplifying complex scientific narratives and reducing learning to consumption. The study concludes that effective science communication design should balance enjoyment with critical inquiry, using both comfort and discomfort to foster curiosity, reflection, and ethical awareness. By analysing design’s role in shaping the “science experience”, this research contributes to understanding how cultural institutions can create more nuanced, thought-provoking encounters between audiences, knowledge, and space. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Craft to Code and Back Again: Rethinking Art, Materiality and Exhibition Practices in the 21st Century)
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15 pages, 4461 KB  
Article
Conceptualising Sound, Inferring Structure, Making Meaning: Artistic Considerations in Ravel’s ‘La vallée des cloches’
by Billy O’Brien
Arts 2026, 15(1), 23; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010023 - 21 Jan 2026
Viewed by 150
Abstract
Processes of preparing repertoire for performance in the field of artistic pianism are far from linear, often involving many epistemic modes contributing to an ever-evolving relationship between the pianist, the score and their instrument. Beyond the absorption and internalisation of the score (note-learning, [...] Read more.
Processes of preparing repertoire for performance in the field of artistic pianism are far from linear, often involving many epistemic modes contributing to an ever-evolving relationship between the pianist, the score and their instrument. Beyond the absorption and internalisation of the score (note-learning, memorisation, addressing technical issues), a range of contingent elements preoccupy pianists in their artistic journey of interpretation. These multifarious influences and approaches have increasingly been acknowledged in the field of Artistic Research, which has for some time sought to move beyond textualist, singular readings of works as bearers of fixed meanings and recognise the creative role of performers and the experience they bring. Through scholarly and phenomenological enquiry concerning the practice of ‘La vallée des cloches’ from Miroirs by Maurice Ravel, in this article, I attempt to represent the multi-modal complexity involved in the creative process of interpretation from my perspective as pianist and artistic researcher. I present novel engagement with scholarship in a multidisciplinary sense, demonstrating a dialogue through which scholarship and performance can interact. I reveal new insights about ‘La vallée des cloches’ through the analysis of my own diary entries logged over three practice sessions, exploring the themes of sound conceptualisation, the consideration of musical structure, and the creation of meaning. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Creating Musical Experiences)
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23 pages, 3232 KB  
Article
Clouds Are Soul: Goethe Versus P. H. Valenciennes on Caspar David Friedrich’s Sublime Representation of Sky
by Jorge Olcina Cantos and María Rosario Martí Marco
Arts 2026, 15(1), 22; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010022 - 20 Jan 2026
Viewed by 252
Abstract
The representation of atmospheric phenomena and, in particular, clouds was a prominent theme for painters during the transition from the eighteenth to the nineteenth centuries. During this period, under the influence of rationalism and encyclopedism, Luke Howard’s cloud classification (1803) was proposed, gaining [...] Read more.
The representation of atmospheric phenomena and, in particular, clouds was a prominent theme for painters during the transition from the eighteenth to the nineteenth centuries. During this period, under the influence of rationalism and encyclopedism, Luke Howard’s cloud classification (1803) was proposed, gaining followers among scientists and artists of the time. Among the latter, Goethe was instrumental, as he intensely promoted this cloud classification, even dedicating his own poems and drawings to it. From then on, some painters depicted cloud studies following the academic principles recommended by Goethe. Caspar David Friedrich did not adopt these principles and depicted clouds as bodies endowed with freedom and feeling, as fragments of soul. The work of P. H. de Valenciennes played a prominent role in this approach; it was translated into German and became a reference manual for Romantic landscape painting. This paper addresses the scientific and cultural context of that historical moment, studies the importance of the landscape, and its aerial aspect, in the painting of the time and details the role of Friedrich as a singular author of German Romanticism, who did not want to participate in the academic ideas of representing clouds, since the sky was, for this painter, a symbol of the transcendent. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Visual Arts)
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18 pages, 3685 KB  
Article
Super-Conscious Dreams: Martin Arnold’s In Tinseltown (2021) and Full Rehearsal (2017)
by Emmanuelle André and Martine Beugnet
Arts 2026, 15(1), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010021 - 19 Jan 2026
Viewed by 181
Abstract
In Tinseltown and Full Rehearsal are examples of digital found-footage practice that explore the creative potential of the glitch. Featuring Monroe and Mickey, the two films conjure up what Walter Benjamin called figures of a “collective dream”. In his recent work, the [...] Read more.
In Tinseltown and Full Rehearsal are examples of digital found-footage practice that explore the creative potential of the glitch. Featuring Monroe and Mickey, the two films conjure up what Walter Benjamin called figures of a “collective dream”. In his recent work, the artist blasts these two figures open and subjects them to a drastic process of digital decomposition, revealing the inner workings of the imaging system that determines their appearance on screen. In doing so, the glitches and malfunctions of the software reveal the presence of a machinic substratum—the convulsing expression of encoded dreams that carry the repressed traces of the mechanical, the graphic, and the organic. However, in their reliance on live-action footage on the one hand and animation film on the other, the two works arguably stand as examples of two separate forms of unconscious, as introduced by Benjamin in “The Work of Art”. In our analysis of In Tinseltown and Full Rehearsal we suggest that Arnold’s work allows for a radical reconsideration of the visual unconscious as previously defined in 20th century thought, exposing the ways in which not only the frontiers between the functioning of the psyche and the machinic have become progressively more porous, but how the very notion of the unconscious is in question. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Film and Visual Studies: The Digital Unconscious)
13 pages, 652 KB  
Article
Right Here and Right Now: A Study on the Creative Practice of Site-Specific Improvisatory Dance Performance in Lhasa
by Lin Zhu
Arts 2026, 15(1), 20; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010020 - 17 Jan 2026
Viewed by 217
Abstract
This study focuses on the site-specific improvisatory dance performance Deconstruction and Reconstruction of the Path of Life, a self-directed and self-performed work in Lhasa’ s sacred space dominated by a huge Buddha statue. It aims to explore how site-specific context and altitude [...] Read more.
This study focuses on the site-specific improvisatory dance performance Deconstruction and Reconstruction of the Path of Life, a self-directed and self-performed work in Lhasa’ s sacred space dominated by a huge Buddha statue. It aims to explore how site-specific context and altitude sickness shape performance, and how freedom and meaning are created within limitations. Using auto-ethnography including video documentation, creative journals and reflective observation, this research examines interactions with spatial elements (Xuan paper, Buddha feet, stairs, flowers) and physiological responses to low oxygen. Main findings include that altitude-induced breath difficulty, chest oppression, and movement imbalance became generative forces: breathing rhythm changes (steady-rapid-steady) symbolized life’s struggles, while a “pain-movement-meaning” chain fostered new bodily senses, framing pain as a gateway to spirituality. Rather than treating the space as a static backdrop, this study explores how the material and cultural characteristics of the location actively lead to dance movement choices and choreographic logic under extreme physiological condition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Musical Arts and Theatre)
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18 pages, 5816 KB  
Article
Lola Montès: Max Ophüls’s Final Dive into Circularity and Repetition
by Carlos Natálio
Arts 2026, 15(1), 19; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010019 - 16 Jan 2026
Viewed by 221
Abstract
This article aims to reflect on the testamentary dimension of Max Ophüls’ last feature film, Lola Montès, from a research context that seeks to understand the thematic, narrative, and stylistic traits of film directors’ last films. Through a mobilisation of Gilles Deleuze’s [...] Read more.
This article aims to reflect on the testamentary dimension of Max Ophüls’ last feature film, Lola Montès, from a research context that seeks to understand the thematic, narrative, and stylistic traits of film directors’ last films. Through a mobilisation of Gilles Deleuze’s concept of crystal image, and a film analysis of the work and comparison with other important Ophüls films, this paper argues that the constant movement of the characters and the filmmaker’s camera throughout his body of work is, in this testament film, transformed into an infernal circularity in which its protagonist is imprisoned. This movement without escape, based on the circularity of the circus arena in which Lola is held captive, is ultimately a way of portraying the decadence and exploitation of mass entertainment culture in its logic of capture, exploitation and commodification of its “human products.” The culmination of circularity and repetition in this capture is associated with the degradation of both the living performative body of Lola and the figure of its director Max Ophüls, given that Lola Montès was not only a very difficult film to direct but also very poorly received at the time of its release. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Swan Songs: Philosophical Reflections on Death, Time, and Memory in Testament Films)
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25 pages, 7226 KB  
Article
New Architectural Forms in the Landscape as a Response to the Demand for Beauty in 21st-Century Tourism and Leisure
by Rafał Blazy, Hanna Hrehorowicz-Gaber, Alicja Hrehorowicz-Nowak, Wiktor Hładki and Jakub Knapek
Arts 2026, 15(1), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010018 - 15 Jan 2026
Viewed by 255
Abstract
The architecture of spas and recreational complexes is increasingly being analyzed not only through the prism of its formal diversity but also through its functional, technical, and esthetic responses to evolving societal expectations. This article descriptively examines the context of evolving user needs [...] Read more.
The architecture of spas and recreational complexes is increasingly being analyzed not only through the prism of its formal diversity but also through its functional, technical, and esthetic responses to evolving societal expectations. This article descriptively examines the context of evolving user needs and select examples representing new architectural forms integrated into the landscape, responding to the growing demand for beauty (understood subjectively), experiences, and emotional value in 21st-century tourism and recreation. The most diverse and characteristic examples were selected and described in order to maintain a broad context of analysis and illustrate contemporary changes as faithfully as possible. The descriptive approach enables a systematic and comprehensive representation of phenomena, identifying recurring patterns, spatial trends, and contextual relationships. Rather than being limited to numerical data, it provides a structured analytical framework that supports the objective documentation of architectural and urban processes. The aim of this study is to systematize selected design trends that reflect contemporary cultural aspirations and environmental concerns, and to illustrate the evolving relationship between architecture, nature, and users. The results indicate a consistent shift toward landscape-integrated, experiential, and esthetically driven architectural solutions, demonstrating that contemporary tourism facilities increasingly prioritize atmosphere, immersion in nature, and sensory engagement over traditional utilitarian design. This study concludes that beauty, understood as subjective esthetic experience, has become a key determinant in shaping new architectural forms, reinforcing the role of architecture as both a cultural expression and a tool for enhancing well-being in tourism and leisure environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intersecting Dialogues: Contemporary Art and Architecture in the 21st Century)
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20 pages, 359 KB  
Article
Curatorial Strategies to Resist Gender Asymmetries in Portugal: Two Women-Only Landmark Exhibitions
by Rita Cêpa
Arts 2026, 15(1), 17; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010017 - 14 Jan 2026
Viewed by 377
Abstract
This article adopts a comparative approach to two women-only landmark exhibitions in Portugal—Portuguese Women Artists (1977) and All I Want. Portuguese Women Artists from 1900 to 2020 (2021–2022)—to explore how curatorial strategies can function as tools of resistance to gender asymmetries in [...] Read more.
This article adopts a comparative approach to two women-only landmark exhibitions in Portugal—Portuguese Women Artists (1977) and All I Want. Portuguese Women Artists from 1900 to 2020 (2021–2022)—to explore how curatorial strategies can function as tools of resistance to gender asymmetries in the art field. Spanning 45 years, these initiatives reflect distinct historical, institutional, and cultural contexts: the former emerged in a post-revolutionary country as a bold, politically charged intervention, foregrounding female creativity within an established institution and promoting international visibility, while the latter offered a thematically structured survey that, albeit belatedly, engaged with more complex and globally informed debates. Both exhibitions converge in celebrating Portuguese women’s creative production, exposing persistent structural challenges and adopting critical yet defensive curatorial frameworks that reveal an ambivalent feminist gesture and certain limitations. By analysing these case studies, this research further emphasises the ongoing need for initiatives that foster discussion, awareness, visibility, and equity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Active Women in the Art Market: 1950–2020. Mapping Gallerists, Collectors, Maecenas, Auctioneers, Curators in Emerging Markets)
12 pages, 20475 KB  
Article
Perceiving Through the Painted Surface: Viewer-Dependent Depth Illusion in a Renaissance Work
by Siamak Khatibi, Yuan Zhou and Linus de Petris
Arts 2026, 15(1), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010016 - 12 Jan 2026
Viewed by 166
Abstract
This study explores how classical painting techniques, particularly those rooted in the Renaissance tradition, can produce illusions of depth that vary with the viewer’s position. Focusing on a work rich in soft shading and subtle tonal transitions, we investigate how movement across the [...] Read more.
This study explores how classical painting techniques, particularly those rooted in the Renaissance tradition, can produce illusions of depth that vary with the viewer’s position. Focusing on a work rich in soft shading and subtle tonal transitions, we investigate how movement across the frontal plane influences the perception of spatial structure. A sequence of high-resolution photographs was taken from slightly offset viewpoints, simulating natural viewer motion. Using image alignment and pixel-wise difference mapping, we reveal perceptual shifts that suggest the presence of latent three-dimensional cues embedded within the painted surface. The findings offer visual and empirical support for concepts such as and dynamic engagement, where depth is constructed not solely by the image, but by the interaction between the artwork and the observer. Our approach demonstrates how digital analysis can enrich art historical interpretation, offering new insight into how still images can evoke the illusion of spatial presence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Visual Arts)
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15 pages, 5093 KB  
Article
Presencing Echoes in the Archive: Material Voices Through Space and Time
by Linh S. Nguyen and Elena Russo
Arts 2026, 15(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010015 - 12 Jan 2026
Viewed by 236
Abstract
This article presences the material entanglements of analog and digital archives through a workshop-based inquiry titled “Collaging Echoes and Resonances Across Space/Time”, which applied Annie Goh’s question of whether echoes can claim a voice of their own to objects. In this session, participants [...] Read more.
This article presences the material entanglements of analog and digital archives through a workshop-based inquiry titled “Collaging Echoes and Resonances Across Space/Time”, which applied Annie Goh’s question of whether echoes can claim a voice of their own to objects. In this session, participants collectively collaged with imprints of meaningful objects diffracted through materials like paint, tape, etc., and with the objects themselves. Group discussions yielded key considerations that we examine in the context of archiving. These include understanding materials in relation to the structures that shape the formation of their echoes; tracing how echoes may evolve into unrecognizable forms; and how iterative threads of meaning across ongoing interactions act upon each other in non-linear time. As the digital archive becomes increasingly prominent, these questions help to frame implications across archival formats to better understand the relationships between iterations of an item and the containers in which it is held, furthering the conceptualization of a posthuman archive. This paper applies new materialist perspectives of knowledge to history and archiving through an arts-based approach, offering a novel entry point to understanding archival echoes. It will interest scholars and/or practitioners in history, curation, and museum studies, enriching criticality in how knowledge is enacted in the material. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Craft to Code and Back Again: Rethinking Art, Materiality and Exhibition Practices in the 21st Century)
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25 pages, 34637 KB  
Article
Raphael’s Sistine Madonna as a System of Visual Engineering
by Aleksandra Pelikhovska
Arts 2026, 15(1), 14; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010014 - 6 Jan 2026
Viewed by 386
Abstract
This study proposes a structural method for analyzing Raphael Sanzio’s Sistine Madonna through the constructive modeling of visual impact. Such an approach makes it possible to connect the internal logic of the painting’s conception with the historical circumstances of its creation as a [...] Read more.
This study proposes a structural method for analyzing Raphael Sanzio’s Sistine Madonna through the constructive modeling of visual impact. Such an approach makes it possible to connect the internal logic of the painting’s conception with the historical circumstances of its creation as a papal commission for Julius II, clarifying those compositional decisions that appear unique and uncharacteristic for Raphael’s usual manner. The term visual engineering is employed to designate a structural approach that shifts attention from traditional iconographic interpretation to the underlying constructive logic of the image—the principles by which Raphael organizes space, atmosphere, and light into a unified perceptual system. The aim of the study is to reveal how these interdependent mechanisms generate clarity of spatial hierarchy and integrate architectural, luminous, and symbolic functions within a coherent mode of perception. In this sense, the Sistine Madonna emerges as a deliberately constructed environment of vision, in which pictorial form and theological meaning operate as inseparable components of a single Renaissance act of artistic thought. Full article
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13 pages, 1134 KB  
Article
Phytomorphic Elements of Embroidery from Cuetzalan, Puebla: Iconological Analysis
by Reyna I. Rumbo-Morales, Jennifer N. Garibay-Palacios, Susana Vega-Leal, Carmen Elvira Hernández Magaña, Carlos Antonio Quintero Macías, David Guillermo Pasillas Banda, Francisco E. Oliva and Miguel A. Ramírez-Torres
Arts 2026, 15(1), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010013 - 6 Jan 2026
Viewed by 307
Abstract
This article analyzes the symbolism of the phytomorphic motif of the mountain vine in the traditional embroidery of Cuetzalan, made by the Nahua women of the Masehual Siuamej Mosenyolchicauani collective. From the iconological approach, the pre-iconographic, iconographic and iconological levels of the motif [...] Read more.
This article analyzes the symbolism of the phytomorphic motif of the mountain vine in the traditional embroidery of Cuetzalan, made by the Nahua women of the Masehual Siuamej Mosenyolchicauani collective. From the iconological approach, the pre-iconographic, iconographic and iconological levels of the motif will be examined, with the support of ethnography. The study identifies that the vine, a recurring plant element in traditional blouses, not only fulfills an ornamental function, but also constitutes a symbol of vital continuity, union and regeneration. Its visual representation alludes to the movement of life and the relationship between the natural and spiritual planes within the Nahua worldview. Through embroidery, the artisans express their connection to the land and the transmission of ancestral textile knowledge, reaffirming their cultural identity in a community context. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Art and Visual Culture—Social, Cultural and Environmental Impacts)
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20 pages, 15704 KB  
Article
‘ART’: What Pollock Learned from Hayter
by Elizabeth L. Langhorne
Arts 2026, 15(1), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010012 - 4 Jan 2026
Viewed by 354
Abstract
Experimental prints made by Jackson Pollock in Stanley William Hayter’s Atelier 17 in 1944–45 were crucial to the evolution of his modernist style, an evolution quite different from Clement Greenberg’s conception of it. Hayter said “Pollock always claimed that he had two masters, [...] Read more.
Experimental prints made by Jackson Pollock in Stanley William Hayter’s Atelier 17 in 1944–45 were crucial to the evolution of his modernist style, an evolution quite different from Clement Greenberg’s conception of it. Hayter said “Pollock always claimed that he had two masters, Benton and me.” Following Charles Darwent’s Surrealists in New York: Atelier 17 and the Birth of Abstract Expressionism 2023 and Christina Weyl’s The Women of Atelier 17 2019, this article examines a 1944–45 engraving in which Pollock inscribed the letters A, R, T. This examination reveals the experimental techniques and the gendered themes that shaped Pollock’s continued exploration of his art as erotic dialogue. Absorbing Hayter’s technical understanding of the three-dimensionality of an engraved line as it produced and moved through “the space of the imagination,” Pollock succeeded in mediating between male and female tensions, stated in underlying imagery, as he began in ‘ART’ to generate his abstract and unifying all-over linear webs, culminating in such works as Autumn Rhythm 1950. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Visual Arts)
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14 pages, 2223 KB  
Article
Pressing Inwards and Outwards: The Multilayered “Unconsciouses” of Karrabing Digital Media Practices
by Charlie Hewison
Arts 2026, 15(1), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010011 - 4 Jan 2026
Viewed by 561
Abstract
This article explores the media practices of the Karrabing Film Collective through the lens of a materialist model of (colonial, ecological, and digital) unconscious, reconceived as a dynamic interplay of repression, expression, compression, and distension. Drawing on Jean-François Lyotard’s reworking of Freudian operations [...] Read more.
This article explores the media practices of the Karrabing Film Collective through the lens of a materialist model of (colonial, ecological, and digital) unconscious, reconceived as a dynamic interplay of repression, expression, compression, and distension. Drawing on Jean-François Lyotard’s reworking of Freudian operations and Elizabeth Povinelli’s critique of late liberal geontopower, the paper analyzes how Karrabing’s improvisational realism and aesthetic strategies—particularly their use of smartphone filmmaking and digital superimposition—navigate and resist the structural pressures of settler governance. The article equally focuses on their augmented reality archive project, Mapping the Ancestral Present, as a potent example of how digital compression can be refunctioned to enact distension across space and time. Situating the unconscious not only in the psychic or symbolic but also in the infrastructural and technological, the article argues that Karrabing’s practice maps a politics of survivance in the “cramped space” of settler modernity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Film and Visual Studies: The Digital Unconscious)
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20 pages, 4877 KB  
Article
Aesthetics and Usability in Digital Art Repositories: Using the iMedius Platform to Collect User Feedback Through Attention Tracking
by Minas Pergantis, Anastasia Katsaounidou, Aristeidis Lamprogeorgos and Andreas Giannakoulopoulos
Arts 2026, 15(1), 9; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010009 - 3 Jan 2026
Viewed by 423
Abstract
Digital art repositories strive to disseminate works of art through the World Wide Web and to reach the widest possible global audience. To that end, providing an optimal user experience (UX) is essential. Usability is the cornerstone of UX in all interactions between [...] Read more.
Digital art repositories strive to disseminate works of art through the World Wide Web and to reach the widest possible global audience. To that end, providing an optimal user experience (UX) is essential. Usability is the cornerstone of UX in all interactions between the visitor and the platform, but at the same time, as virtual places of art and culture, digital art repositories aim to also provide an aesthetically pleasing interface that stimulates the senses. These goals are not always aligned, and how end users perceive the interplay between aesthetics and usability is an important factor in creating a balanced UX. This study presents a streamlined methodology for the collection of visitor insights concerning aesthetics and usability, taking advantage of the attention tracking capabilities of the iMedius platform. The iMedius Form Builder digital research tool allows the collection of both self-reported feedback through survey replies and candid data through gaze and mouse tracking, thus creating a robust dataset that can lead to interesting insights. An interactive questionnaire investigating user reaction to three different digital art repositories is presented, and feedback from higher education students from the fields of digital art and media is presented and analyzed in detail. Through this analysis, interesting insights are derived regarding striking a balance between high usability and memorable aesthetics. Full article
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13 pages, 3642 KB  
Article
Digital Kunstkamera: 18th Century: A Virtual Documentary and Artistic Reconstruction Experience
by Denis Kukanov and Nadezhda Stanulevich
Arts 2026, 15(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010008 - 3 Jan 2026
Viewed by 335
Abstract
The virtualization of museums is in a phase of active development, with institutions seeking relevant and original forms. At the same time, the number of projects dedicated to the reconstruction of past museum expositions is not as substantial as one might hope. How [...] Read more.
The virtualization of museums is in a phase of active development, with institutions seeking relevant and original forms. At the same time, the number of projects dedicated to the reconstruction of past museum expositions is not as substantial as one might hope. How can we accurately reconstruct a museum’s appearance and exhibitions with limited source materials? How can the reconstruction process be consistent with the historical image of the museum and its digital strategy? The scientific study of the appearance of the museum, the preparation of digital content, and the artistic solution of the image in the virtual environment were carried out by the employees of the Kunstkamera’s Laboratory of museum technologies. The issues of museum bureaucracy, the preservation of objects, information, and the integrity of the approach to the formation of digital funds of the museum are solved through the implementation of the project within the museum and the involvement of specialists from outside for the final assembly of VR. The concept of a universe within a single room, which gave rise to a universal museum like the Kunstkamera, has evolved into the creation of the Laboratory of Museum Technologies, enabling the development of complex technological projects within the museum itself. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Museums in the Digital Age)
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14 pages, 5899 KB  
Article
The Digital Unconscious and Post-Disaster Recovery in the Cinema of Haruka Komori
by Aya Motegi
Arts 2026, 15(1), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010010 - 3 Jan 2026
Viewed by 338
Abstract
How does digital technology mediate decision-making and shape our understanding of disaster recovery? I address this question by examining both the administrative and cinematic uses of digital images in the reconstruction process following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Post-disaster digital mediation is [...] Read more.
How does digital technology mediate decision-making and shape our understanding of disaster recovery? I address this question by examining both the administrative and cinematic uses of digital images in the reconstruction process following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Post-disaster digital mediation is characterized by the administrative use of what has been termed “operational images,” designed not for interpretation but for action, particularly in disaster response and prevention. I connect the social and ethical dimensions of post-disaster recovery with the ontological dimensions of the technological characteristics of digital photography. By comparing Japanese independent filmmaker Haruka Komori’s digital filmmaking practice with the operational images utilized by administrative and research bodies, I aim to demonstrate how her particular digital aesthetics elicit the latent capacity of the “digital unconscious” and offer new modes of perceiving post-disaster recovery, in contrast to both other forms of post-disaster digital mediation and to analog photography. Through close analyses, I argue that her work articulates an alternative vision of recovery—one rooted not in spatial management or predictive planning, but in physical attachment to place, trust in the future, and imaginative engagement with survivors and the dead. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Film and Visual Studies: The Digital Unconscious)
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22 pages, 10668 KB  
Article
Ataurique Decoration in Elite Palaces/munà: A Case Study in the Western Suburbs of Madīnat Qurṭuba
by Inmaculada Villafranca Jiménez
Arts 2026, 15(1), 7; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010007 - 2 Jan 2026
Viewed by 404
Abstract
The demographic growth resulting from the proclamation of the Caliphate of Córdoba led to the urban densification of the city’s western suburbs. In these areas, pre-existing munya complexes became integrated into the urban fabric, which complicates their identification. The discovery of Building 1 [...] Read more.
The demographic growth resulting from the proclamation of the Caliphate of Córdoba led to the urban densification of the city’s western suburbs. In these areas, pre-existing munya complexes became integrated into the urban fabric, which complicates their identification. The discovery of Building 1 in Block 1 of the O7 partial plan, interpreted as a space of self-representation and display due to the presence of a substantial group of ataurique carvings, contributed to its identification as a munya (pl. munà). The aim of this article is to present the main conclusions of the study of this ataurique programme and to discuss its possible interpretation, nature and evolution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Al-Bustān: Recreational Estates in the Islamic West and Sicily—Architectures and Spaces of Prestige as Symbols of Power)
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36 pages, 9992 KB  
Article
Rock Varnish Dating, Surface Features and Archaeological Controversies in the North American Desert West
by David S. Whitley and Ronald I. Dorn
Arts 2026, 15(1), 6; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010006 - 1 Jan 2026
Viewed by 623
Abstract
Archaeological surface features on desert pavements, including geoglyphs, are notoriously difficult to assess. Lacking temporally diagnostic artifacts, they may be impossible to place chronologically, limiting their inferential utility. Not surprisingly, controversies have developed in the North American desert west over certain of these [...] Read more.
Archaeological surface features on desert pavements, including geoglyphs, are notoriously difficult to assess. Lacking temporally diagnostic artifacts, they may be impossible to place chronologically, limiting their inferential utility. Not surprisingly, controversies have developed in the North American desert west over certain of these features. We describe methods for chronometrically constraining the ages of desert pavement features using three approaches to rock varnish dating: varnish lamination (VML), lead-profile dating, and the cation ratio (CR) as an additional tool. Each of these techniques may be applied to rock varnished cobbles that have been upthrust into areas previously cleared of the original pavement through cultural or natural processes. We use these methods to resolve two archaeological issues: the age of the intaglios (geoglyphs) along the lower Colorado River corridor and whether the Topock (or ‘Mystic’) Maze is the product of Precontact Indigenous or late-nineteenth-century railroad construction. Ethnographic analysis allows us to contextualize these features and to consider two additional issues: the antiquity of the Yuman speakers’ cultural pattern in the lower Colorado River region and the function of the Topock Maze. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Rock Art Studies)
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12 pages, 2357 KB  
Article
Holy AI? Unveiling Magical Images via Photogrammetry
by Katerina Athanasopoulou
Arts 2026, 15(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010005 - 1 Jan 2026
Viewed by 499
Abstract
Recent text-to-image AI systems have revived the long-standing fantasy of the image that appears to generate itself. Building on Chesher and Albarrán-Torres’s concept of ‘autolography’, this article situates contemporary AI-generated imagery within a longer lineage of self-generating images that extends from religious acheiropoieta [...] Read more.
Recent text-to-image AI systems have revived the long-standing fantasy of the image that appears to generate itself. Building on Chesher and Albarrán-Torres’s concept of ‘autolography’, this article situates contemporary AI-generated imagery within a longer lineage of self-generating images that extends from religious acheiropoieta (‘not made by hand’) through photography to computational image-making. Through the lens of Practice-as-Research (PaR), it positions digital photogrammetry as a knowledge ground in which the fantasy of the self-generating image continues to perform the faith structures of earlier visual cultures. Drawing on photogrammetric experiments originating within Lisbon’s Church of São Domingos in 2018, this article examines unexpected artifacts—ghosts, smears, and fragmentations—that emerge from movement, and reveal the body of the researcher in the centre. It argues that such digital ‘miracle’ images function as contingent, embodied events, and renders visible the labour, presence, and gestures typically erased by automated systems. It playfully proposes the ‘cheiropoieton’ (‘made by hand’) as an embodied counter-ethics to autolography, insisting on friction, care, and accountability in contemporary image-making. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Craft to Code and Back Again: Rethinking Art, Materiality and Exhibition Practices in the 21st Century)
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25 pages, 3128 KB  
Article
The Fun Palace: How an Unrealized Project Influenced Art Museums
by Martyna Nowicka-Wojnowska
Arts 2026, 15(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010004 - 31 Dec 2025
Viewed by 440
Abstract
The Fun Palace, a project initiated by Joan Littlewood and Cedric Price in 1961, exemplifies a pivotal transformation in the approach of cultural institutions toward their visitors. By centering on the audience experience, the Fun Palace signifies a departure from conventional institutional practices [...] Read more.
The Fun Palace, a project initiated by Joan Littlewood and Cedric Price in 1961, exemplifies a pivotal transformation in the approach of cultural institutions toward their visitors. By centering on the audience experience, the Fun Palace signifies a departure from conventional institutional practices and represents a seminal example of unconventional art institution projects. This paper will examine the project, closely looking at the architecture, programming, and cybernetic structure of the Fun Palace. The purpose of this examination is to demonstrate how and why the ideas of Littlewood and Price predate the contemporary policies of institutions interacting with their audiences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Visual Arts)
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27 pages, 7479 KB  
Article
To Boldly Remember: Memorials and Mnemonic Technologies from Star Trek’s Vision to Israeli Commemoration
by Inbal Ben-Asher Gitler and Bar Leshem
Arts 2026, 15(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010003 - 31 Dec 2025
Viewed by 536
Abstract
This article examines memory and monuments in the science fiction Star Trek franchise as a lens for understanding commemoration technologies and how futuristic visions of memorials anticipated real ones, especially during times of conflict. To understand the cultural reciprocity of sci-fi television and [...] Read more.
This article examines memory and monuments in the science fiction Star Trek franchise as a lens for understanding commemoration technologies and how futuristic visions of memorials anticipated real ones, especially during times of conflict. To understand the cultural reciprocity of sci-fi television and contemporary commemoration of war and trauma, we investigate the interactive website produced by the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation, Kan, titled Kan 7.10.360, which commemorates the victims of the 7 October 2023 Hamas massacre of civilians, soldiers, and policemen in Israel’s Gaza Envelope region. The 7.10.360 website employs advanced technologies to create what we identify as a digital “counter-monument.” By applying the concept of metamemorial science fiction relating to the Shoah, investigating its victims’ commemoration and examining the globital turn in memory work, we demonstrate that the Kan project realizes digital mnemonic practices engaged in Star Trek. We argue that the renowned series performs and anticipates three aspects of globital memory work and novel digital commemoration, also prevalent in the Kan 7.10.360 website: the personalization of memory using images; televisual testimony or documentation that mediates personal experience; and the display of objects that symbolize quotidian aspects of the victims’ lives. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contemporary Visual Culture in Conflict Zones and Contested Territories)
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30 pages, 6487 KB  
Article
The Gold Necklace of Li Jingxun: Ritual Materiality and Trans-Asian Symbolic Authority
by Yanyan Zheng, Ziyi Wang and Xi Zheng
Arts 2026, 15(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010002 - 26 Dec 2025
Viewed by 987
Abstract
This article reexamines the gold necklace excavated from the Sui-dynasty tomb of Li Jingxun (李静训, 600–608 CE), shifting attention from stylistic attribution to ritual function and funerary context. While previous studies have emphasized Persian, Byzantine, or Indian influences, this study situates the necklace [...] Read more.
This article reexamines the gold necklace excavated from the Sui-dynasty tomb of Li Jingxun (李静训, 600–608 CE), shifting attention from stylistic attribution to ritual function and funerary context. While previous studies have emphasized Persian, Byzantine, or Indian influences, this study situates the necklace more plausibly within the Iranian–steppe cultural sphere and the Turkic–Sogdian exchange networks active along the Silk Roads in the late sixth and early seventh centuries. Through analysis of its segmented structure, polyhedral gold beads, pearl rondelle, nicolo intaglio clasp, and gemstone arrangement, the article identifies close technical and visual parallels in Central Asia and the wider Iranian world. The necklace is interpreted as an apotropaic object likely worn in life and placed in the tomb to extend its protective and guiding functions after death. Attention to bodily use, clasp orientation, and associated grave goods—especially a stemmed cup with Eurasian ritual associations—clarifies how the necklace operated within a Buddhist burial setting timed to Lichun 立春 (Beginning of Spring). Situating the object within the Li family’s Xianbei 鲜卑 background and documented connections with Sogdian communities, this study demonstrates how foreign ornaments were actively understood and integrated into Sui aristocratic funerary practice, rather than adopted as passive luxuries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attitudes, Practices, Rituals and Funerary Arts Across Disciplines and Cultures)
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36 pages, 29391 KB  
Article
For Memory and Decoration—Group Portraits as Placemakers in Early Modern Amsterdam
by Norbert E. Middelkoop
Arts 2026, 15(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts15010001 - 22 Dec 2025
Viewed by 482
Abstract
Rembrandt’s Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp, Nightwatch, and Syndics are rightfully considered masterpieces of seventeenth-century Dutch painting. Few museum visitors realize they are among over one hundred corporate group portraits commissioned in Amsterdam during that period by the civic guard, charitable institutions, [...] Read more.
Rembrandt’s Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp, Nightwatch, and Syndics are rightfully considered masterpieces of seventeenth-century Dutch painting. Few museum visitors realize they are among over one hundred corporate group portraits commissioned in Amsterdam during that period by the civic guard, charitable institutions, and the craft guilds. Such paintings were the result of the collective desire of a group of people to be represented and immortalized during their execution of the jointly shared responsibilities on which the urban society was built. Corporate group portraits were commissioned and produced to occupy wall spaces in semi-public buildings, reinforcing the missions of both the institutions and the sitters. Their meaning changed fundamentally after they started to leave their original locations and found their way into the direct custody of the city. Some of the paintings were acknowledged as masterpieces and, with the focus firmly on their artistic value, their historical function became neglected. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renaissance Rhapsody: Miscellany and Multimodality in Early Modern Europe)
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