Vuk Ćosić on net.art's legacy, independence, and the misuse of technology

Slovenian artist Vuk Ćosić, a pioneer of net.art, discusses his vision of transferring the 'virus of freedom' through digital networks. He reflects on the movement's utopian ideals and their evolution, noting that early beliefs in online freedom were naive given corporate control (e.g., Zuckerberg owning user content). Ćosić criticizes the lack of serious critical discourse around net.art, citing Morgan Quaintance's article in Art Monthly. He advocates for artistic independence and social relevance, praising projects like Trevor Paglen's ImageNet Roulette for their critical and simple approach. Ćosić names mid-generation artists he admires: Evan Roth, Aram Bartholl, Constant Dullaart, Paolo Cirio, Cory Arcangel, and younger artist Joana Moll. He emphasizes 'misuse' of technology as a key artistic strategy. Current projects include an 'info-prepper' initiative to share his file collection via hidden site-specific hotspots, and a book translating Lev Manovich's 'Aesthetics of AI' into Slovenian with AI-generated experiments. Ćosić dismisses remaking his iconic works out of context, calling it 'useless mannerism.' The interview was conducted by Valentina Tanni and published in Artribune Magazine #52.