As museums and cultural institutions continue to grapple with how to exhibit, preserve, and contextualize digitally native art, the Tezos Foundation and HEK (House of Electronic Arts) are working together to address this challenge.
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The two organizations announced a one-year partnership through 2026, focused on advancing blockchain-based artistic practices through exhibitions, education, and long-term preservation.
This collaboration builds on a relationship dating back to 2022, when HEK publicly embraced Web3 and blockchain as tools to expand participation, ownership, and sustainability in digital art.
Exhibition spanning virtual and physical space
Two selected exhibitions will be held on HEK’s virtual platform virtual.hek, showcasing artists working in digital and blockchain-based practices. Each exhibition will feature at least six artists and include the release of on-chain artwork in partnership with one of the leading companies, objkt. $NFT A platform for the Tezos ecosystem.
The program also extends to the public sphere. During Art Basel 2026, HEK will host outdoor presentations at its Basel location, bringing blockchain-based art beyond the walls of the organization and into shared civic spaces.
Three internationally recognized curators specializing in art and technology will oversee the exhibition, which emphasizes experimentation and interdisciplinary perspectives.
“Our collaboration with the Tezos Foundation opens new curatorial and technological possibilities for HEK, allowing us to explore experimental media art forms that transcend institutional and spatial boundaries.”
Sabine Himmelsbach, HEK Director
Education, access and hands-on learning
The partnership goes beyond exhibitions and focuses on public engagement and education.
HEK will install an on-site kiosk at the Basel venue, allowing visitors to explore digital exhibitions and learn about blockchain-based art directly within the museum space. In parallel, in-person workshops will introduce NFTs, blockchain technology, and digital ownership to new audiences through guided, hands-on experiences.
The goal is to solve the mystery and make blockchain art accessible not only to collectors and technologists, but also to ordinary museum visitors.
Preserve your digital art for the long term
Through EU COST Action European Media and HEK’s leadership of the Software-Based Art and Ownership Working Group within the Born-Digital Art Conservation and Knowledge Network (EMBARK), this collaboration will support international training schools. $NFT keep.
The program will be held at ZKM | The Center for Art and Media brings together museum professionals, conservators, and researchers from across Europe to address one of digital art’s most pressing challenges: how to preserve works inherent in software, networks, and blockchain.
“Our collaboration with HEK supports the museum’s long-term programming and our focus on blockchain education. This partnership aims to build a durable foundation for future generations of artists working with technology.”
Alexandra Artamonovskaya, Head of Art at Trilitech, Tezos’ R&D hub in London
Broad institutional promotion of blockchain art
The HEK partnership strengthens the Tezos Foundation’s broader strategy to support blockchain arts within established cultural institutions. Previous collaborations include projects with the Musée d’Orsay, the Serpentine and the LAS Foundation. All of this aims to integrate blockchain into curation operations rather than treating it as a parallel ecosystem.
