LI-MA and Nxt Museum present Pioneers of Media Art: The First Years of Montevideo, a new exhibition tracing the early development of video art and experimental media practices in the Netherlands. Opening on 11 June 2026, the presentation marks the second chapter of Nxt Foundation’s evolving artistic programme dedicated to the expanded field of new media art.

The exhibition is developed in close collaboration with LI-MA, whose role is central in activating, researching and making accessible the legacy of media art connected to the Netherlands. Drawing on its extensive archive and collection spanning six decades, LI-MA has curated a focused selection of pioneering works from the earliest years of Montevideo, the Amsterdam-based video art institute founded in 1978 by René Coelho.

These materials bring together key works by artists who helped shape the language of early media art through experimentation with video, animation, light, rhythm and sound. Central to the presentation is the work of Jeep and Livinus van de Bundt, father and son, whose collaborations explored the moving image as a spatial and perceptual medium. Their works are shown alongside archival footage and works by artists affiliated with Montevideo, including Nam June Paik, Tom Klinkowstein, Trevor Batten, and Nan Hoover.

Rather than presenting media art as a fixed historical category, the exhibition approaches these early experiments as living works that continue to resonate within contemporary artistic and technological contexts. The exhibition reflects on the role of artist-led initiatives, analogue experimentation and institutional infrastructures in shaping the field of media art as it is understood today.

The presentation forms part of Nxt Foundation’s broader artistic programme, which explores media as a gateway to new worlds across historical, contemporary and future perspectives.

Programme

• 18:00 – Doors open
• 19:00 – Opening remarks by Merel van Helsdingen (Founder & Director, Nxt Museum), Gaby Wijers (Director, LI-MA), Ruben Baart (Creative Lead, Nxt Museum), and Sanneke Huisman (Curator, LI-MA)
• 19:30 – 21:30 – Exhibition preview

About Nxt

Nxt Foundation operates at the intersection of art and technology. In the context where technological developments increasingly shape cultural and social realities, Nxt Foundation is committed to examining and sharing the impact of emerging technologies on artistic practice and society at large. Through the support of artists, the development of new works, and the cultivation of knowledge and future art forms, Nxt Foundation stimulates an environment for critical inquiry and experimentation.

This programme is kindly supported by Cultuurloket DigitALL.

Header: Livinus & Jeep van de Bundt, Moiré (1975). In collection: LI-MA.