除了攝影、電影、電視外，在六十至八十年代少為人知的媒體藝術史之後，今日媒體藝術家活躍於數位創作的各個領域，包括互動式藝術、遺傳藝術、電子傳訊藝術，甚至是機器人和奈米技術，藝術家們設計並主導實驗，在這些不斷變化的過程中，引發藝術史學、媒體學和與文化相關各學科的熱烈討論。從Laterna Magica（一種最早的投影設備）至活動畫景、魔術幻燈、電影和近十年來的視覺藝術，媒體藝術史研究提供給試圖在視聽媒體歷史中尋求發展演變的藝術家一個基礎，這是一個創新且曲折的演變，所有時期皆藉由藝術、科學與科技間的緊密關係而加以區分。

After photography, film, video, and the little known media art history of the 1960s-80s, today media artists are active in a wide range of digital areas (including interactive, genetic, and telematic art). Even in robotics and nano-technology, artists design and conduct experiments. This dynamic process has triggered intense discussion about images in the disciplines of art history, media studies, and neighboring cultural disciplines. The Media Art History Project offers a basis for attempting an evolutionary history of the audiovisual media, from the laterna magica to the panorama, phantasmagoria, film, and the virtual art of recent decades. It is an evolution with breaks and detours; however, all its stages are distinguished by a close relationship between art, science, and technology.