Symbiosis Protocols: The Algorithmic Commons

DIGITAL ARTS EXHIBITION 2026

Symbiosis Protocols: The Algorithmic Commons

Curatorial Statement

As artificial intelligence becomes progressively embedded

within production, perception and decision-making systems, “technology” has long ceased to be merely a tool, evolving instead into a condition that is reshaping societal structures. This Symbiosis Protocols: The Algorithmic Commons exhibition does not purport to offer answers about the future. Rather, it constructs itself as an ongoing, operational field of negotiation — where humans, artificial intelligence, ecosystems and non-human life forms are simultaneously placed within the same programmed logic, mutually constraining, conversing and strategising.

The artists' focus lies not in how technology can become ‘more advanced,’ but rather in asking: when data, energy, institutions, and power become intertwined, who sets the rules? Who is included in the system? Who is excluded?

And within these constantly updating algorithmic structures, is there still room for care, risk, and responsibility? The ‘Algorithmic Commons’ is not an idealised utopia. It resembles an unformed public sphere—where protocols remain in draft, terms are unsettled, and the very discord, noise, and failures constitute the means by which this system becomes perceptible.

Within the immersive environment of the curved giant screen, images cease to be mere objects of observation, transforming instead into states that can be entered, experienced, and contemplated. Here, the future is not a predicted outcome, but an unfolding process.

Exhibition Unit

Main Exhibition·Digital Art

The core exhibition presents immersive works on a curved-screen environment, framing moving images as a site of negotiation between AI, humanity, ecology, and power.

AIGC Shortlisted Films Unit

After Loop x TapNow jointly launch an AI video creation competition, open to all creators passionate about visual storytelling and generative art. Participants must utilise TapNow as their core workflow to produce 1–3 minute short films (subject matter unrestricted), with encouragement for experimental narratives, visual language and technical innovation. Entries will be shortlisted based on creativity and execution quality. Outstanding works may be publicly screened within the AfterLoop exhibition programme, alongside receiving platform creation credits and promotional support.

Workshops & Artist Talks

During the exhibition, 8 interactive workshops will be launched simultaneously, fully presenting methods, systems, and creative practices:

Playing Like a Drummer: Building an IDM Improvisational Live Set System
Writing Code with Language: Vibe Coding for Interactive Visual Co-creation
Body Reconstruction of Millennial Dreams: Exploring Motion-Sensing Interactive Creation
Future Design Starting from Space
Building Emotional Containers: Gaussian Scanning and Digital Memory Spaces
Eight Movements and Stillness • Electronic Wellness Session: Electronic Ba Duan Jin
Nature Code: Visual Poetics of Flowers and Symbiotic Protocols
AI Unit Champion: Creative Sharing Session