About us

The House of Electronic Arts is dedicated to exploring art that applies, addresses and reflects on new media and technologies. As sole successor to [plug.in] Art & New Media and Shift –Electronic Arts Festival, the House of Electronic Arts combines their previous activities and its new agenda under one roof. The House of Electronic Arts also pursues research into how best to conserve, archive and document digital artworks. In early 2011, the Christoph Merian Foundation, the predecessors, and Canton Basel City launched the House of Electronic Arts Basel Foundation as the official Board of Trustees. The new House of Electronic Arts was opened officially on May 27th 2011.

The primary focus of the House of Electronic Arts is to present and foster contemporary art projects that apply and address new media and technologies, and reflect on their social, economic and political impact on our daily lives. A year-round programme of events takes place in its location on the Dreispitz site in Basel/Münchenstein. The next Shift – Electronic Arts Festival will take place in May 2014. In addition, the House of Electronic Arts is currently investigating the demands of collecting digital art. In close collaboration with artists, researchers, and related initiatives and institutions at home and abroad, the House of Electronic Arts aspires to establish itself as a lively venue for debate and exploration of the realm of electronic arts and digital culture.

The year-round programme takes up art and new media, activities pursued by [plug.in] since its inception in the year 2000, and offers a programme of exhibitions and events such as concerts, lectures, workshops and educational projects. These are aimed at a broad audience and encompass the work of regional, national and international artists and artistes. The House of Electronic Arts aspires to establish itself as a place of encounter for artists and professionals as well as the general public.

Shift – Electronic Arts Festival is an international platform for electronic arts and culture. Since 2007 the Festival has successfully embraced the broad scope of electronic arts and a large, diverse audience attends its annual programme of concerts, exhibitions, video and film, scientific lectures and parties. The House's commitment to an interdisciplinary approach allows it to register the shifts and seisms that occur in the field of electronic culture.