The New Museum’s ‘New Humans’ Reckons With Human-Machine Relations in the Workplace

The New Museum has inaugurated its recently renovated space with 'New Humans: Memories of the Future,' a sprawling exhibition featuring over 700 works across four floors. The show explores the historical and evolving relationship between humanity and labor, tracing the narrative from ancient Mesopotamian myths to the industrial age and the rise of robotics. Key sections like 'Mechanical Ballets' highlight how artists have historically responded to the dehumanization of the workforce through the lens of early 20th-century avant-garde movements.

The evolution of agriculture tells the story of the world in an unmissable exhibition at Fondazione Prada

L’evoluzione dell’agricoltura racconta il mondo in un’imperdibile mostra alla Fondazione Prada

The Fondazione Prada in Milan is hosting "Dash," a comprehensive solo exhibition by Chinese artist Cao Fei that explores the intersection of ancient agricultural rituals and cutting-edge technology. The exhibition features installations like 'Land Ceremony,' where an agricultural drone is treated as a ritualistic rice dragon, alongside VR experiences and documentary films that investigate the automation of farming in China and Southeast Asia.

Walker Art Center Restaurant Cuts Front-of-House Staff as QR Codes Take Over

Cardamom, the in-house restaurant at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, is laying off sixteen front-of-house staff members as it transitions to a QR-code-based ordering system. The restaurant’s operator, DDP Restaurant Group, cited fluctuating museum traffic and rising operational costs as the primary drivers for the shift to a counter-service model. While kitchen staff and bartenders will remain, the move effectively replaces traditional table service with digital automation.

The Fruitful Dialogue Between AI, Knowledge, and Creation in a Free Festival at the BnF

Le dialogue fécond entre IA, savoir et création dans un festival gratuit à la BnF

The Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF) is hosting the inaugural edition of "Noûs," a free festival exploring the intersection of artificial intelligence, archival knowledge, and artistic creation. Located in the hall of the François-Mitterrand site, the event features eight artistic projects that utilize the library's vast catalog to reveal hidden histories rather than generate falsehoods. Highlights include Audrey Large’s 3D-printed sculptures exploring suppressed female knowledge, Justine Emard’s immersive digital cave of AI-generated sirens, and the collective Obvious’s speculative botanical frescoes based on historical scientific plates.

Walker Art Center Severs Ties with Restaurant for Laying Off Workers in Favor of QR Codes

The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis has announced it is severing ties with its on-site restaurant, Cardamom, following the establishment's sudden decision to lay off its front-of-house staff. The restaurant, operated by chef Daniel del Prado, intended to replace 16 servers and hosts with a QR code ordering system to combat financial losses. Museum director Mary Ceruti stated that the move caught the institution by surprise and does not align with the museum's commitment to providing a welcoming, full-service environment for its visitors.

Industrial Dreams of the GDR

Industrieträume der DDR

The exhibition "Robotron – Arbeiterklasse und Intelligenz" has opened at the Hartware Medienkunstverein (HMKV) in Dortmund, following its initial run in Leipzig. Centered on the history of the GDR’s largest computer manufacturer, the show features 20 artistic positions including photography, film, and sculpture, alongside a significant five-meter oil sketch by Socialist Realist painter Werner Tübke. The presentation bridges East and West German industrial histories by juxtaposing state-commissioned propaganda with progressive, unofficial works by artists like Ruth Wolf-Rehfeldt and A.R. Penck.

Artist shows agriculture droning forward

Chinese artist Cao Fei is set to debut her latest multimedia project, "Dash" (known as "Super Farms" in China), at the Fondazione Prada in Milan on April 9. The exhibition is the result of three years of field research across China and Southeast Asia, where Cao documented the rise of smart farming and the integration of AI, drones, and autonomous vehicles into traditional agricultural landscapes. Her work captures a unique cultural synthesis where modern technology is sometimes integrated into ancient rituals, such as the worship of drones as deities.

‘It’s a huge, futuristic space with massive skylights’: Ali Zolghadri’s best phone picture

Ali Zolghadri, a Tehran-born fine art photographer, captured a composite image of the central atrium of the Iran Mall in Tehran—the world's largest shopping mall—which was shortlisted in the creative category of the 2026 Sony World Photography Awards. The photograph, taken four months before the US and Israel launched their war on Iran, depicts the mall's futuristic architecture with sweeping curved lines, metallic surfaces, and massive skylights, and includes a lone passerby to emphasize scale. Zolghadri emphasizes that his process involves manual editing in Photoshop without AI, blending three frames and removing unnecessary elements to construct meaning.

Is Art Dying Along With Work?

Stirbt die Kunst mit der Arbeit?

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence raises a fundamental paradox for the future of creativity: while automation could theoretically free humans from labor to pursue artistic endeavors, it simultaneously threatens the economic foundations of the art world. If AI-driven job displacement leads to a widespread loss of disposable income, the commercial market that sustains professional artists could effectively collapse.