talk: conversation pieces with Anan Fries & Noemi Garay

conversation pieces

Theconversation piecesseriestakeseveryday technologies as its starting point and situates them within the context of the swimming pool. Each edition is based on a text that provides the thematic framework and serves as a common point of reference. Guests are invited to explore the topic from artistic, theoretical, or technological perspectives and to share their thoughts or their own work in discussion. 

The internet often feels like a dangerous place. The central question, therefore, is: How can one navigate it while remaining both safe and visible? This pertains to both personal experiences and the structures of the platforms that contribute to this risk. The Dark Forest Theory describes the internet as a dark forest where it is safer to remain invisible. Bogna Koniors’*The Dark Forest Theory of the Internet*(2026) applies this idea to digital spaces, where concealment and deception become part of survival.

What does this mean for the future of the internet and our actions within it? And what rules and structures would be needed to create an internet that is safe and accessible to all? Anan Fries and Noemi Garay Murcia will discuss these questions.

The conversation series “conversation pieces” is curated by Anna-Lena Panter as part of the transmediale x Tropez collaboration. 

The discussions will be held in German. 

Photo: Anan Fries, Lorecore, 2026, screenshot from a video essay, courtesy of the artist

About the Curators

transmedialeis an annual festival and a space for critical reflection on art and technology. It brings together transdisciplinary communities and diverse audiences with an interest in digital cultures to develop new perspectives on our technological age. The transmediale festival takes place annually at the end of January and forms the core of the organization’s program. In addition to the festival, transmediale organizes events, publications, and residency programs throughout the year. The 40th edition of transmediale will take place in 2027.

https://transmediale.de/en

Anna-Lena Panterorganizes, curates, and edits projects based in Berlin and Vienna. Since 2020, she has held various roles at the transmediale festival in Berlin. She currently coordinates the festival program and is responsible for transmediale’s year-round studio activities and residencies. With a background in publishing, she organizes exhibitions, discussion forums, and gatherings.

About the guests

Anan Friesis an interdisciplinary artist based between Basel and Berlin. Their practice explores how technologies embody power, ideology, and the potential for social change. Fries creates installations and performances and collaborates regularly with HAU Berlin. Dey’s video essay*Artificial Sex Ep. 1 & 2*received the IDFA DocLab Award for Digital Storytelling as well as the Special Jury Prize from Columbia University’s Digital Storytelling Lab. They are co-curator of*New Rituals [for the End of the World]* at the HEK Haus der elektronischen Künste in Basel.

Noemi Garay Murciais a curator and cultural producer based in Berlin. She is co-director of Error 417 Expectation Failed, an independent foundation dedicated to promoting contemporary internet art. Since 2020, she has regularly curated exhibitions at panke.gallery and also co-founded the /rosa project space in Berlin. Her focus is on art that explores the conditions of contemporary networked technologies, and she is a passionate advocate for spaces where people can come together to experience and discuss net-based art.