The Living Archive – Salzburg Festival 2026
The Living Archive brings S+T+ARTS Ec(h)o projects to the Salzburg Festival.
18–29 August 2026.
How can archives become active spaces for participation, memory and discovery? From 18 to 29 August 2026, the Salzburg Festival presents The Living Archive, a new archive festival exploring how artistic practice and emerging technologies can transform the way we engage with cultural heritage. Through immersive installations, XR experiences and multisensory interactions, visitors are invited to experience the archive as a living, evolving space rather than a static repository.
At the heart of the programme are two artistic projects developed within the S+T+ARTS Ec(h)o Residencies Programme. Archive of Touch, by Iz Paehr & Merging Visions, by Merve Şahin. Presented alongside Mats Staub’s Memory Office and the FAUST VR Experience developed with Ars Electronica, The Living Archive illustrates how interdisciplinary collaboration between artists, cultural institutions and technologists can open new possibilities for archives in the digital age.
Archive of Touch, by Iz Paehr, reimagines access to historical costumes and props through photogrammetry, haptic interaction and audio description. Challenging the traditional “look but don’t touch” approach to museum collections, the project creates new multisensory experiences while making cultural heritage more accessible.
Merging Visions, by Merve Şahin, explores the relationship between architecture, geology and performance through digital scans, archival materials and an immersive VR experience. The work uncovers the historical, ecological and spatial layers that shape the Salzburg Festival venues, inviting visitors to navigate between natural and built environments.
