Vuk Ćosić on net.art, utopias, and the Digital Masterpieces booth at Art Basel

Vuk Ćosić, a pioneer of net.art in the 1990s, reflects on the early internet's utopian promises and their aftermath in an interview with Anika Meier for SLEEK. He discusses the formation of the nettime mailing list in Venice in June 1995, the ethos of "Burn the Fucking Manual" (BTFM), and the shift from a community of practice to an audience and springboard for careers. Ćosić will present his early ASCII works, including the first Deep Throat conversion (1998) and five short ASCII videos from the 4+2 series, at the Digital Masterpieces booth curated by Georg Bak at Zero10 by Art Basel in June 2026. He contrasts net.art's critical stance with later digital art and NFT culture, criticizes techno-fascism and the TESCREAL ideology, and advises artists to know their tools and context. He also mentions his current analog work, including artist books and body bags, and his pride in the 1997 documenta theft.