Cao Fei's 'Dash' at Fondazione Prada Examines Agriculture as Computational Surface

Cao Fei's exhibition 'Dash' at Fondazione Prada in Milan (April 9–September 28, 2026) reimagines contemporary agriculture as a computational system. The show features a two-channel video 'Dash' (47'05"), a virtual reality game 'Dash-180c', and photographic installations, alongside rice paddy structures, weather stations, agricultural drones, and XAG promotional footage. The works explore how satellites, sensors, and algorithms transform land into an interconnected governance surface. 'Precision Agriculture' presents farming knowledge as an archival, consultable database. The exhibition draws on theories by Benjamin H. Bratton (planetary-scale computation) and Achille Mbembe (biopolitics). Produced by Fondazione Prada, the installation was developed by Small Production, with works courtesy Vitamin Creative Space and Sprüth Magers.