EP 104: Predictions for 2026 with William Powhida

We're kicking off 2026 with artist William Powhida, whose 2017 work After the Contemporary predicted the future of art with unsettling accuracy. From the NEA closure to resource wars to Miami flooding, his satirical timeline keeps proving prescient. We discuss what he got right, what he missed (AI, influencers), and his predictions for 2026—including the rise of the "haute garde," the gambling-ification of culture, and why flexible pricing models might finally give artists more agency.

 

Relevant links:

• William Powhida's After the Contemporary at the Aldrich Museum (2017)
• Zero Art Fair
• New Visions Report 2025
• The Art Angle Podcast - Ben Davis interviews Nadia Asparouhova on Antimemetics