Tezos Foundation and HEK Basel Announce 2026 Partnership for Digital Art and Blockchain-Based Practice
The Tezos Foundation and HEK (House of Electronic Arts) have announced a new year-long partnership focused on the presentation, education, and long-term preservation of blockchain-based art. Running through 2026, the collaboration will focus on digital art exhibitions, public engagement, and training. The partnership builds on a long-term relationship that began in 2022, when HEK publicly outlined its early commitment to presenting, mediating, and collecting digital and media art — including embracing blockchain technology and Web3 as a means to expand community participation and collect sustainable on-chain works.
This partnership will explore how blockchain technologies can support artistic production, exhibition, and conservation in ways that are sustainable, accessible, and institutionally robust. At the center of the collaboration is a program of two exhibitions hosted on HEK’s online platform, virtual.hek, and an outdoor presentation at HEK’s Basel location.
Through the partnership, three leading curators at the forefront of art and technology will oversee their respective virtual and on-site exhibitions. The virtual exhibitions will feature at least six artists working with digital and blockchain-based practices, accompanied by releases of digital artworks in partnership with objkt platform. The physical presentation, taking place during Art Basel 2026, will feature an innovative outdoor presentation, extending the experience into the public realm.
“The collaboration with the Tezos Foundation opens up new curatorial and technological possibilities for HEK. By involving guest curators on the virtual.hek platform, we can highlight international perspectives and explore experimental forms of media art that transcend institutional and spatial boundaries.”
Sabine Himmelsbach, Director of HEK in Basel
In addition to the exhibitions, HEK will also install an on-site kiosk in its Basel venue, allowing visitors to explore the exhibitions and learn more about blockchain-based art directly within the museum space. Alongside this, the partnership includes a strong educational component, with in-person workshops at HEK designed to introduce new audiences to blockchain, NFTs, and digital ownership through guided, hands-on experiences.
Beyond public programming, the collaboration places a strong emphasis on professional knowledge-sharing and preservation. As part of HEK’s leadership of the working group Software-based Art and Ownership within the EU COST Action European Media and Born-Digital Art Conservation and Knowledge Network (EMBARK), the partnership will support an international training school on NFT preservation hosted at ZKM | Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe, Germany. The program will bring together professionals from across Europe.
“Working with HEK contributes to the Tezos Foundation’s work in fostering sustained museum programming, innovative curatorial frameworks, and blockchain education. This partnership is about supporting long-term programming and continuing to strengthen foundations for future generations of artists working with technology.”
Aleksandra Artamonovskaja, Head of Art at Trilitech (Tezos R&D Hub in London)
This new partnership with HEK reinforces Tezos Foundation's long-term commitment to supporting digital and blockchain art adoption across the institutional art landscape, building on prior global projects with partners including Musée d’Orsay, Serpentine, and LAS Foundation.
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