Post-Internet is a loosely defined 21st-century art movement. It emerged after the internet became ubiquitous—not as a period 'after' the internet, but as an 'internet state of mind'. Marisa Olson coined the term in 2006. Gene McHugh adopted it in 2009 via his blog, turning it into a movement. Artists make work that moves fluidly between screens and galleries, drawing on the web’s visual language while engaging critically with networked culture. Mediums include Second Life portraits, digital paintings on silk, and 3-D-printed sculpture.
those looking for technical instruction in coding or 3D printing
those expecting consensus on aesthetics or politics
Who should study it, and who should skipHide who it is for
The written brief1 min read
What the thing is
A 21st-century contemporary art movement. Not a period after the internet, but an ‘internet state of mind’.
Where it came from
Marisa Olson coined ‘postinternet art’ in 2006. Gene McHugh adopted it in 2009 via his blog ‘Post-Internet’, turning it into a defined movement rooted in earlier Internet Art.
What it gets right
It names a condition: the internet as ambient medium, not subject. It rejects novelty for material entanglement—screens, silk, 3D printers, Second Life avatars—all treated as equally legitimate substrates.
What it gets wrong
It misleads with its name. ‘Post-Internet’ implies succession, but the movement describes simultaneity: digital and physical are co-constitutive, not sequential stages.
Why it matters now
Because infrastructure is no longer backstage. When algorithms shape perception and platforms dictate display, Post-Internet’s insistence on fluid space—screen to gallery, code to silk—is a working grammar for art that refuses digital exceptionalism.
Is it worth your time
Yes—if you need to understand how art metabolises infrastructure, not just imagery.
