Olia Lialina's Self-Portrait Demands Alternative Browsers

Russian net artist Olia Lialina, based in Germany, created Self-Portrait, a fragmented self-portrait viewable only across three specific browsers. The work forces users to download and arrange browser windows side by side, each occupying a third of the monitor width. The first browser can be any common one; the second must be Tor, which ensures anonymous and secure browsing; the third is Beaker, a peer-to-peer browser. This choice is conceptual and political, promoting tools that protect users and foster an alternative web. Lialina, a historic figure in Net Art, has long focused on the cultural role of the internet and active user participation. Her earlier works include Summer (2013), which highlighted connection speed discrepancies by placing each frame on a different server, and Best Effort Network (2015), addressing the potential effects of abandoning net neutrality.