Forthepast40years,ArsElectronica--whichisnotonlyafestivalandaprize,buthasalsoservedasamuseumandlaboratorysince1996--hasbroughttogetherart,technologyandsocietyinhighlycomplexandlivelyrelationships.Whatbeganin1979,inLinz,Austria,asanexperimentinartandcommunalpolitics,istodaythedefiningmodelforsuchmultimediaevents.
SincethenArsElectronicahasbecomeoneofthebest-knownforumsforthedevelopmentofmediaartandthediscourseconcerningtechnologicalculture.
Richlyillustrated,andfeaturingnumeroustexts,anextensivelistofprojectsandentertainingasides,this512-pageanniversarypublicationoffersalookbackatthedevelopmentoftheproject,whichhasbeenfocusingsinceitsbeginningonthefutureasitcomesintobeing.