Virtual Beauty: a digital aesthetic will be unveiled at Somerset House

This summer,Virtual Beauty’arrives at Somerset House, marking one of the most thought-provoking Somerset House exhibitions in recent years. Running from July 23rd to September 28th, 2025, the show invites visitors to examine how digital technologies and virtual culture are reshaping our understanding of beauty, identity, and self-expression in the 21st century.

A landmark in Somerset House exhibitions

With contributions from over 20 international artists, Virtual Beauty Somerset House explores the aesthetics of our hyper-connected world. From AI-generated portraits to performance art and immersive installations, the exhibition questions how social media, artificial intelligence, and virtual avatars influence how we see ourselves—and how others see us.

Among the standout works is ORLAN’s seminal piece Omniprésence (1993), in which the artist broadcasted her own plastic surgery as a radical critique of Western beauty standards. Blending art history and bodily transformation, the piece still resonates in today’s filtered world.

Amalia Ulman’s Excellences & Perfections, first staged on Instagram, challenges the boundaries of authenticity. Through a fictional seven-month online makeover narrative, Ulman exposed the fragility and performativity of online identities, forcing viewers to rethink what’s real.

AI’s role in redefining beauty is also front and center. Artists such as Minnie Atairu, Ben Cullen Williams, and Isamaya Ffrench present algorithmically-generated portraits, confronting how artificial intelligence interprets—and potentially dictates—modern beauty norms.

Beyond avatars and filters: Virtual Beauty Somerset House explores identity, gender, and power

The exhibition also delves into how avatars, filters, and virtual personas reflect and distort ideas of gender, race, and selfhood. Works by Harriet Davey, Frederik Heyman, and Andrew Thomas Huang extend the boundaries of physical form, creating digital selves that transcend the limitations of reality.

Co-curated by Bunny Kinney, Mathilde Friis, and Gonzalo Herrero Delicado, and initiated by the House of Electronic Arts (HEK) in Basel, Virtual Beauty is not just an art show—it’s a cultural mirror. As Kinney notes, the project stems from his work with Dazed Beauty, aiming to trace how Gen Z has grown up in a world where self-curation is second nature.