2025: A Year of Visibility, Resistance, and Solidarity
This year began with a gold-chain-clad Mark Zuckerberg promising Meta would “reduce mistakes” and “get back to our roots of freedom of expression.” For many artists who faced restrictions, visibility loss, or even account deletion, those words likely feel ironic at best.
And yet — the fight to truly defend free expression and artists online has not only continued, it has grown. New doors have opened, new alliances have formed, and together we’ve pushed the conversation into spaces where artists’ voices are too often missing.
What became clearer than ever this year is how unique Don’t Delete Art is. As the only group specifically dedicated to visual artists’ rights online, making our cause visible — to allies, adversaries, policymakers, technologists, and the broader public — is critical. Protecting artists’ visibility often depends on the visibility of the issue itself. Much of our work this year focused on doing exactly that.
This year, we:
Attended the Coalition of Independent Tech Researchers (CITR) summit in Berlin — bringing artists’ concerns into spaces where their voices are rarely heard.
Attended MozFest (Mozilla Festival) and All Tech Is Human gatherings, meeting in person with digital rights activists whose goals intersect with our own.
Built deeper bridges with the legal community, presenting with Lawyers for the Creative Arts, Avant-Garde Lawyers, and the Barreira Masters Programme.
Took part in “Don’t Look Now,” a groundbreaking physical art exhibition in NYC presented by Art At A Time Like This, featuring DDA artists.
Were included in the Artificial Intelligence and Creativity Report of the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Alexandra Xanthaki
Spoke at UNESCO during World Press Freedom Day in Brussels, on the panel “Artistic Freedom and Creativity: Navigating AI in a Volatile World.”
Presented at RightsCon for the second time.
Participated in Fall of Freedom, highlighting art censored online as part of a two-day event on art censorship in the US.
Provided our community with information and boilerplate language to respond to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s Request for Information on “Tech Censorship.”
Launched our new YouTube series, “DDA: An Interview With…” to spotlight artists whose work has been restricted or erased.
Continue to update our website’s Tips and Appeals pages to better support artists when takedowns happen.
Developed relationships with out-of-court dispute settlement bodies in Europe to expand pathways for fair resolution.
Joined Bluesky and connected with the team at Flashes, strengthening our presence on emerging platforms.
Throughout all of this, one thing has remained constant: rtists deserve visibility and a voice online. Behind every deleted post or restricted account is a person, a practice, and a story that matters.
We’re deeply grateful to the artists, researchers, human rights workers, lawyers, curators, and allies who have stood beside us and helped us defend artistic freedom online. Your courage fuels this work.
As we move into a new year, we carry that energy forward — with purpose, persistence, and a deep love and appreciation for art and artists.
In Solidarity,
The DDA Team