Run the Code: Data-Driven Art Decoded

Run the Code: Data-Driven Art Decoded is open at The Blanton Museum of Art through August 2, 2026, having run since March 8. It's an exhibition that puts algorithms and generative AI at the center, pulling from the Thoma Foundation's Digital and Media Art Collection to show how contemporary artists are using code to make work. The two big names you'll see are Refik Anadol and Daniel Canogar, and the whole thing is an immersive look at the digital age we're living in.

What that looks like in practice is a range of pieces that don't just sit on the wall. Some are interactive systems that respond to your movement as you walk through the room, and others are custom software programs that generate images that keep evolving while you watch. The subject matter pulls from a few different directions—nature, art history, internet culture, and human behavior—so you'll see the same tools applied to very different things. The overarching question it asks is what it means to create art in a world shaped by data.

The exhibition was organized by Hannah Klemm, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Blanton, and Kathleen Forde, Director and Curator of Media Arts at the Thoma Foundation. It's a collaboration between the museum and the foundation's collection, so the works come from a curated selection of digital and media art rather than a single artist's studio. If you've been following the conversation around AI and art, this is a good place to see it actually working in a gallery setting.

Admission is included with your general museum ticket, and it's free for members. The Blanton is in Austin, and the show runs through August 2, so you've got plenty of time to catch it.