The article provides an overview of the evolution of net.art from the mid-1990s to the late 1990s, discussing its experimental and rebellious nature. The text highlights the works of key net.artists and collectives who used the internet as a creative platform while challenging mainstream artistic and technological conventions. Olia Lialina’s My Boyfriend Came Back from the War is mentioned for rethinking visual elements such as frames and montages in a digital context, drawing parallels to Eisenstein’s film theories. Net.art projects such as Desktop Is and Form Art showcase the internet’s capacity for personal expression and formal experimentation. During the late 1990s there was a move towards socially engaged software such as Mongrel’s Heritage Gold, which critiques racial and class biases that are embedded in technology, by the end of the decade, net.art gained mainstream recognition. However, this institutionalization raised concerns about the loss of net.art’s alternative roots. despite these challenges, the article emphasizes the internet’s continued potential for promoting politically charged, creative practices. The end of the discussion on tactical media, underscores net.artists’ ability to navigate and challenge commercialized and controlled digital landscapes. The article portrays net.art as an evolving movement, which balances the origins with the pressures of modern recognition and institutionalization.
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