In her lecture “The Sculptural in the (Post-)Digital Age” on 13 May 2024, Prof. Dr. Ursula Ströbele discussed if it is still possible to give a definition of the sculptural in times of digital art (and art permeated by the logic of the digital). To this end, she examined traditional dictums from art theory with regard to their validity in relation to artworks based on augmented, virtual or mixed reality technologies. Ströbele also pointed out the institution-critical potential of digital technologies in art – especially with regard to questions of access to artworks. According to her, technical innovations may make it possible to limit the regulatory power of established institutions (museums and collections) and bring about a democratisation of the art world. In the follow-up discussion, however, it was critically noted that access to digital artworks still includes major barriers and prerequisites (on the part of the recipient).

Prof. Dr. Ursula Ströbele is a professor of art studies specialising in contemporary art at Braunschweig University of Art. From 2019 to 2023, she was head of the Study Centre for Modern and Contemporary Art at the Central Institute of Art History in Munich.