FMR 26 Prolog
6 June 2025, 2 p.m. Linz Schlossberg
Preview of the fourth edition of the Festival for Art in Digital Contexts and Public Spaces with artistic works from the University of Arts Linz: Sculptural Conceptions / Ceramics, space&designstrategies and Tangible Music Lab.
The fourth edition of LINZ FMR, the festival for art in digital contexts and public spaces, will take place next spring. Following FMR 19 along the banks of the Danube River, FMR 21 around the Mühlkreisbahnhof station, and FMR 23 in the southern harbour area, in June 2026 the Linz Schlossberg will be transformed into an open and freely accessible art space by numerous artists from media art, digital art, and internet art.
The prolog offers sneak peeks of artistic works, talks on the festival’s themes, and an open-air concert night at the Linz Schlossberg.
Programme
2 to 3 p.m.
Opening & welcome (West entrance of Schlossmuseum)
3 to 8 p.m.
Presentations & lectures (around Schlosspark)
20.00 to 24.00
Sound Art & Concerts (Schlosspark, northwest castle wall)
Participating artists, researchers and musicians
- FM[Ai]R-26-Residency-Artists: Clair Bötschi (DE), Selma Kjesen (SE), Lila Rui Lan (CN), †een▲ge g☺d (FR), and YuFu (CN).
- University of Arts Linz, Department of Sculptural Conceptions / Ceramics (led by Sarah Decristoforo and Mara Jenny): Jacob Bartmann, Magdalena Berger, Leonie Brunner, Ivy Deacon, Sonnhild Essl, Jieun Kim, Elena Lengauer, Caroline Lerbro, Lisa Maier, Katharina Mitter, Maria Nalbantova, Mani Ramhormozihoseinizadeh, Louisa Roubik, Helena Sekot, Yao Wang, and Melanie Winter.
- University of Arts Linz, Department of space&designstrategies (led by Andrea Curtoni, Giulia Mazzorin, and Felix Vierlinger): Moritz Gregor Böttjer, Cecilia Bojanic, Leonardo Cattaneo, Viktoria Hauser, Xiling Huang, Kaya Lackner, Tobias Spinka, Rebecca Strasser-Kirchweger, Charlotte Vetter, and Chuming Yu.
- University of Arts Linz, Tangible Music Lab – Sound and Space Class (led by Florian Goeschke): Ksenia Bakhtina, Sam Bereliani, Saumil Bhandari, Gerold Brunner, Mobina Doost, Gundega Graudina, Andreas Gruenauer, Jonas Hammerer, Hanna Kitter, Maria Pae, Lilith-Isa Samer, Boris Shershenkov und OMZOL.
- Lectures by Anna Kraher (AT), Valerie Messini (IT), Luka Prinčič (SI), and REINCANTAMENTO (IT/DE).
- Live and DJ sets by QOA & Primeiro (AR), Voiler (AT), and I-ID (IR).
LINZ FMR
… is a biennial festival and format for artistic processes and positions, that reflects the ephemeral nature of our digital and connected present. The ever-advancing digitalization of everyday life implies an intense overlapping and layering of familiar physical, but also finely interwoven digital spaces. LINZ FMR focuses on the shifts, distortions and rifts that arise in this process and presents current artistic positions in this context. The festival, whose title alludes to ephemerality and short-livedness, presents works whose initial ideas can be found in virtual and/or digital space or have a strong reference to it, but are shown (sometimes in a transformed way) in the physical surroundings of the city of Linz. The focus is primarily on the interstices that arise during these transformations into public space – outside of museums, galleries or art spaces.
FMR 26 will explore four thematic areas, which will be further developed in collaboration with artists and researchers over the coming months and addressed during the exhibition and accompanying talks at the festival in spring 2026:
- Digital Afterlife and Immortality: How does the idea of a digital afterlife change our understanding of death and remembrance? What ethical dilemmas arise from the pursuit of digital immortality? Can the digital archiving of emotional experiences replace or distort authentic memories? What role will digital footprints play in the future archaeology of human culture? How sustainable is digital art in light of the ecological footprint of digital technologies?
- Future Archaeology and Digital Artifacts: What might future archaeology look like if it centers on excavating and interpreting digital artifacts? In what ways does a digital civilization differ from its analog predecessors regarding art and culture? What role do digital artifacts play in defining the identity and history of digital communities? What ethical considerations arise in dealing with data remnants and the long-term storage of digital information?
- AI Societies, Power Structures, and Resistance: What might a society shaped in all aspects of daily life by AI look like? How do algorithms and AI alter the foundations of democratic decision-making and power structures? What impact does machine learning have on interpersonal relationships and social systems? Does the singularity mark the end or rather a new beginning for humanity? What new forms of rebellion are needed to resist a possible AI takeover?
- Digital Deceleration, Isolation, and the New Idyll: How can digital arts contribute to representations of forest solitude and new idylls? How can they promote a simpler lifestyle in an increasingly networked society? To what extent are isolation and disconnection necessary in the digital age? Is non-digital leisure becoming a new form of luxury? What artistic approaches can help raise awareness of the importance of taking breaks from AI?
The festival is organized by the association “LINZ FMR – Art in digital contexts and public spaces.” It was founded by the two art and culture initiatives qujOchÖ and servus.at, the Atelierhaus Salzamt of the City of Linz, the University of Arts Linz, and the Sturm und Drang Gallery.
