Because the future isn’t just coded. It’s critiqued. What’s your favorite Eyebeam project or residency moment? Let me know in the comments.
So do yourself a favor: Follow their residency open calls. Read their archives (they’re free). Donate if you can. And the next time you see a piece of tech art that makes you uncomfortable in the right way—tip your hat to the eyebeam. eyebeam
One resident told me: “At a startup, if I ask ‘should we build this?’ I get fired. At Eyebeam, if I don’t ask that, I’m wasting my time.” Because the future isn’t just coded
When an Eyebeam fellow makes a camera that refuses to record faces, or a chatbot that only lies, or a thermostat that demands to know why you’re touching it—they’re not being whimsical. They’re stress-testing the world we’re about to live in. Eyebeam isn’t a museum. It’s not an accelerator. It’s a shield and a workshop . And right now, as generative AI floods our feeds and surveillance becomes the default, we need their kind of stubborn, joyful, critical weirdness more than ever. Let me know in the comments
That’s the core. In an era of relentless AI hype, crypto grifts, and “move fast and break things” hangovers, Eyebeam moves slow and asks questions. You don’t need to know Processing or p5.js to appreciate what Eyebeam protects. The tools of our daily lives—algorithms, interfaces, sensors, bots—are not neutral. Eyebeam has spent 27+ years proving that artists are the best quality assurance testers for the future.
If you’ve ever watched a glitch artist manipulate a CRT television, seen a speculative design project about surveillance capitalism, or wondered who funded that wild AI-generated installation at your local museum—chances are, Eyebeam’s fingerprints are all over it. Founded in Brooklyn in 1997 (before "tech" was a dirty word and when "new media" still meant CD-ROMs), Eyebeam is the OG residency and production studio for artists who work with technology. Think of it as a hybrid: part MIT Media Lab, part scrappy artist studio, part public gallery.
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