Last week another digital and immaterial artwork was sold at an auction at Sotheby's, one of the most famous art traders. 'COVID Alien' is a crypto-artwork, an NFT, solely a code without any physical manifestation. The price? 11 million dollars. A decade ago we would not have believed anyone who would tell you this had happened. Yet, nowadays, technology and the rapid development of science make the impossible possible. Furthermore, the restrictions imposed on us because of the coronavirus has highlighted and maybe even increased out dependency on technology, the digital and social media. Without them, we would have entirely lost our connection with each other, the world and culture. These technological developments and the growth of the digital realm undeniably impact our practices within the humanities and our idea of society. But how does this work in practice? What is happening within this new and exciting digital realm?

In the next months, the Leiden Arts in Society Blog will start a series revolving around these questions, focusing on the developments of technology and their effects on our existence. From Assassin's Creed to NFT's, from multimedia artworks to religion in video games, a wide variety of topics will be discussed. Stay tuned!