In Real Life – A Reflection on the “Online Exhibition”

Is the move to exhibit online really defined by a distinction of space – “IRL” [In Real Life] physical space vs. the Internet?1 At the time of writing, almost a year into the pandemic, the way we access museums and galleries begs questions of this supposed divide between digital and physical worlds. What is more, what has become, at an impressive speed, an almost compulsory generalised drive to deliver online projects has resulted in a variable explosion of “content” – virtual renderings of actual shows, curated web-specific initiatives, digital viewing booths, video festivals, discursive programmes, and so on – a situation that also, at its core, calls into question the nature and definition of exhibition