Event
The New Atlas of Digital Art 2026: Culture Dome
Register for the eventThe New Atlas of Digital Art: Culture Dome
June 23 and 24, 2026
MEET Digital Culture Center
Viale Vittorio Veneto 2, Milan
2026 Edition
Returning to MEET for its seventh edition on June 23 and 24, 2026, The New Atlas of Digital Art. The 2026 edition, titled “Culture Dome”, will be dedicated to the theme of immersivity, which is emerging not only as a physical space but also as a new cultural paradigm that is redefining physical spaces, communication, narrative languages, and content production, and is shaping a new contemporary economic and cultural ecosystem.
The “Dome” is understood not merely as a physical space, but as an artistic, creative, cultural, and economic dimension that is profoundly reshaping the ways in which the sector is experienced, produced, and evolves. In this edition, the project aims to explore how immersive technologies no longer represent merely a set of specific tools or applications, but rather constitute a structural shift that simultaneously impacts cultural venues, artistic languages, forms of public participation, organizational models, and the economies of the creative and cultural sectors.
MEET Village
Over the course of the two-day event, the ground floor of MEET will be transformed into the MEET VILLAGE; a laboratory of cutting-edge technology where VR, MR, and XR become entirely new forms of expression. The program turns the Village into a living atlas of the expressive possibilities of digital art, where each work becomes a piece of a collective map leading to the uncharted territories of contemporary creativity.
(HERE detailed schedule of the activities available in the Village will be posted shortly)
The exhibitions
On the first floor, meanwhile, MEET’s exhibition spaces will host immersive art installations. Synthetic Creatures by Rebecca Allen is a retrospective tracing half a century of pioneering research: the project documents the evolution of the relationship between body and technology—how the digital representation of human movement has shifted from basic lines to complex simulations, how interactivity has transformed the viewer into a participant, and how virtuality has redefined the boundaries between physical and digital presence (learn more about the exhibition at this link). The Galleries will also feature a showcase of artworks from the European project Studiotopia.
WORK IN PROGRESS PROGRAM
The two-day event will be led by:
- Maria Grazia Mattei – President and Founder, MEET Digital Culture Center
- Agnese Pietrobon – Writer and XR consultant
- Claudio Prati – AIEP | Avventure in Elicottero Prodotti
TUESDAY, JUNE 23rd
9,30 – 10,15
ONBOARDING
- Maria Grazia Mattei – President and Founder, MEET Digital Culture Center
- Patrizia Asproni – Board Member, Fondazione Cariplo; Culture Sector Representative
- Maria Paola Borgarino – Director, Museo nazionale dell’Arte digitale
- Francesca Caruso – Councilor for Culture, Lombardy Region
- Tommaso Sacchi – Councilor for Culture, City of Milan
- Laurence Fouquette L’Anglais – Québec Delegate to Italy
- François Bonet – Consul General of France in Milan
- Stefano Lazzarotto – Consul General of Switzerland in Milan
10,15 – 12,00
SESSION 1 – MUSEUMS AND ART IN THE DIGITAL AGE
The session will begin with a discussion on the evolution of museums and cultural venues in the digital age, exploring the growing presence of digital artworks and the integration of innovative technologies, devices, and models capable of redefining how these spaces are experienced, the relationship with the public, and the promotion of cultural heritage. Museums, cultural centers, and exhibition spaces are now called upon to rethink their function and identity through increasingly hybrid models, in which the physical dimension and the digital environment coexist and integrate. It is within this convergence that new forms of artistic expression and the emerging languages of contemporary culture find their place. In collaboration with the National Museum of Digital Art.
- Maria Paola Borgarino – Director, Museo nazionale dell’Arte digitale (Italy)
- Patrick Moran – Head of Commercial Strategy & Partnerships, Barbican Immersive (United Kingdom)
- Chiara Casarin – Head of the Digital Center, Giorgio Cini Foundation (Italy)
- Alessandra Bogi – Creative Producer, Lucid Realities and Unframed Collection (France)
- Julie Walsh – Curator of Digital Art (Usa)
- Mauro Salvatore – Director, Fondazione Museo Diocesano di Brescia (Italy)
- Maddalena Rosa – Cultural Operator (Italy)
12,00 – 12,15
ARTISTIC INTERLUDE
- Andrea Crespi – Artist (ItalY)
12,30 – 14,30
LUNCH BREAK
14,30 – 16,30
SESSION 2 – INTERNATIONAL ECOSYSTEMS
Through international case studies, this session serves as a genuine research project and an opportunity for professionals in the sector to exchange ideas, offering a comparative overview of the most advanced initiatives in the field of immersive experiences. A dialogue between different models of innovation and experimentation related to immersive experiences. The goal is to consolidate an international exchange network capable of fostering lasting collaborations, the transfer of expertise, and new cultural projects, while also promoting the talents of our region.
- Sabrina Sammuri – Director General of the Directorate General for Culture, Lombardy Region
- Anaïs Emery – Vice President, La Fondation pour la création numérique (Switzerland)
- Yuelai Ruan – Artist, professor, curator (China)
- Jeanne Dompierre – Executive Director, XN Québec (Québec)
- Lauriane Albert – International Development Director, KIKK Festival (Belgium)
- Fahad Al Obaidly – Director of Design, Doha Biennial (Qatar)
- Gimo Yi – Senior Curator at ACC / Artistic Director of ACT Festival (South Korea)
- Antoine Roland – CEO, {CORRESPONDANCES DIGITALES], co-producer of NUMIX LAB. CEO, Numix Lab (France)
16,30 – 16,45
ARTISTIC INTERLUDE
- Mauro Martino – Artist and scientist (Usa)
16,45 – 18,00
SESSION 3 – THE DRAMATURGY OF TELEPRESENCE
A virtual session organized in collaboration with SAT in Montreal and directed by Claudio Prati (AIEP | Avventure in Elicottero Prodotti), dedicated to analyzing new forms of presence mediated by technology, with a particular focus on the performative, narrative, and symbolic aspects of immersive experiences. In this context, the user is no longer a mere spectator, but an integral part of an experience capable of engaging the sensory, cognitive, and emotional dimensions.
- Opening of the live link with SAT in Montréal: a conversation between Maria Grazia Mattei from Italy and Jean-Michel Célérier from Montréal. Featuring contributions from:
- Claire Paillon – Strategic Development Advisor, SAT Montréal (Quebec)
- Adriano Martella – Head of Creative & Creative Director, Filmmaster (Italy)
- Ubiqua, telepresence dance and virtual reality between Milan and Montréal with Ariella Vidach – Italy/Switzerland and Nien Tzu Weng – Taiwan/Canada
21,00 – 22,00
LIVE SET
nD by Ryoichi Kurokawa (Japan)
After performing at international institutions and festivals such as the Tate Modern, Ars Electronica, and MUTEK, the renowned Japanese composer Ryoichi Kurokawa will present the Italian premiere of his work titled “nD,” the third chapter of the “cm:av_c” project, which the artist has been developing over many years. Within the performance, the phenomena of sound and vision, as well as the dynamics of abstraction and concreteness and the qualities of meaning and meaninglessness, take shape in a continuous oscillation between duality and non-duality. The work takes the form of a perceptual space in which our experience constantly moves between separation and inseparability. Through the processing and fusion of sound and image on an abstract level, the work generates an intense audiovisual experience that simultaneously engages sight and hearing. The result is an essential sensory experience, capable of suspending the usual interpretive demands and guiding the audience toward a more immediate, direct, and perceptual relationship with the work.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24th
10,00 – 10,45
SESSION 4 – GLOBAL IMMERSIVE WELLNESS
An experience led by Stefano Tirelli will examine the impact of immersive digital works on individual and collective mental and physical well-being, exploring how sensory environments, sound, images, and interaction can influence perception and also have a significant neurological impact.
- Stefano Tirelli – Professor in Sport Sciences and global mindfulness coach (Italy)
11,00 – 12,00
SESSION 5 – EXPERIENCE ECONOMY
A section dedicated to analyzing international immersive productions across various cultural and creative sectors, examining how the latest technological innovations—including artificial intelligence—are generating new production models, new economies, and emerging markets. Particular attention will be given to the potential of immersive experiences for entertainment and for creating content capable of rebuilding the social fabric of a community. The program will also explore innovative experiences ranging from the creation of “site-specific” immersive works to the development of new formats for performance and entertainment. Through contributions from international experts and case studies focused on emerging sectors, the program will offer a comparative overview of the most advanced experiments in the field of immersivity, fostering dialogue between Italian and international experiences, including the case of FilmMaster.
- Mathieu Gayet – Publishing Director (France)
- Adriano Martella – Head of Creative & Creative Director, Filmmaster (Italy)
- Martin Pošta – Curator, Founder & CEO, Signal Group (Czech Republic)
- Corine Meijers – Creative Producer / Founder, Studio Biarritz and Stichting Podium Biarritz (France)
- Nina Albani – Founder & Executive Producer, AIIO Creative Group (Singapore)
- Ludovica Arci – Co-Founder, SARAVÁ (Italy)
- Damian Kirzner – Founder and Director of Mediamorfosis / Director and General Producer of Immersive Mafalda (Argentina)
12,00 – 12,15
ARTISTIC INTERLUDE
- Fabio Giampietro – Artist (Italy)
12,15 – 13,00
CONCLUSION – REFUNDS AND FUTURE OUTLOOK
A summary of the key findings from the two-day event and a presentation of La Soglia Necessaria: a theoretical reflection developed in collaboration with the Consulate General of Switzerland in Milan and Fondazione Bassetti.
THURSDAY, JUNE 25th
Swiss Corner
9,30 – 11,30
The discussion launched at MEET following The New Atlas of Digital Art continues at the Swiss Corner on Via Palestro. The Consulate General of Switzerland and the Bassetti Foundation take up the question that ran through the two days—every experience needs someone to have it: but under what conditions, within an immersive paradigm, can a subject still be called such?—and relaunch it in the realms of civil society, the economy, and political cultures. With presentations by experts who will analyze how immersivity manifests itself in Switzerland across various contexts: economic, geopolitical, and social.
