Digital Art Exhibit Showcases Tech's Creative Potential in Austin

The Blanton Museum's 'Run the Code' exhibition features data-driven and AI-powered artworks.

Apr. 15, 2026 at 3:36pm

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A visually striking 3D illustration depicting an interactive digital art installation with pulsing, neon-lit geometric shapes and forms that appear to shift and morph in response to unseen forces, conveying the innovative and technologically-driven nature of the artworks on display.Cutting-edge digital art installations at the Blanton Museum's 'Run the Code' exhibition push the boundaries of creativity and interactivity.Dallas Today

The Blanton Museum of Art in Austin, Texas has opened a new exhibition called 'Run the Code: Data-Driven Art Decoded' that showcases over 20 digital artworks created between 2004 and 2022. The exhibition features works by renowned artists and collectives like teamLab, Leo Villareal, and Marina Zurkow, all of whom use data, coding, or AI to shape the appearance and interactivity of their pieces. Visitors can experience a range of digital art, from sculptural blinking car headlights to a digitally-created oil slick on the Nile River.

Why it matters

This exhibition highlights how technology, data, and AI are being leveraged by artists to push the boundaries of creative expression. As the tech industry continues to thrive in Austin, this show provides an opportunity for the public to engage with the intersection of art and technology in a museum setting. The works interrogate ideas around creativity, interactivity, and the role of algorithms in the artistic process.

The details

The 'Run the Code' exhibition features around 20 digital artworks borrowed from the Thoma Foundation's collection. The works were all created between 2004 and 2022, during what the curator Hannah Klemm calls the 'post-social media era.' Visitors can interact with and observe the changing nature of the pieces, which utilize data, coding, and in one case, generative AI to shape their appearance and behavior. The artists and collectives featured include well-known names in the digital art world like teamLab, Leo Villareal, and Marina Zurkow.

  • The exhibition opened just days before the annual South by Southwest festival in Austin.
  • The artworks on display were created between 2004 and 2022.

The players

Blanton Museum of Art

An art museum located in Austin, Texas that is hosting the 'Run the Code' digital art exhibition.

Thoma Foundation

A nonprofit organization started by Dallas art collectors Carl and Marilynn Thoma, who made their fortune investing in software. The Thoma Foundation provided the digital artworks for the 'Run the Code' exhibition.

Hannah Klemm

The curator of modern and contemporary art at the Blanton Museum who organized the 'Run the Code' exhibition.

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What they’re saying

“All the works featured were created between 2004 and 2022 — the 'post-social media era,' as Hannah Klemm, the museum's curator of modern and contemporary art, put it.”

— Hannah Klemm, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Blanton Museum of Art

The takeaway

This exhibition at the Blanton Museum showcases how artists are harnessing the creative potential of technology, data, and AI to push the boundaries of artistic expression. As the tech industry continues to thrive in Austin, this exhibition provides an opportunity for the public to engage with the intersection of art and technology in a museum setting.