Online Marketplace of Ideas

2026

As the mainstream internet fragments, algorithmically, into niche communities, the attention economy is no longer its defining force. Instead, the dark forest has been suburbanized, with the social web increasingly playing out among an ex-urban sprawl of vibe-based cultural cul-de-sacs. This Online Marketplace of Ideas, created by Joshua Citarella & New Models with architecture by sub, collects a sampling of the objects that these digital enclaves produce for the physical world. Primarily, this comprises creator merch: the t-shirts, hats, and other drop-ship ‘basics’ that can be worn on a body. Signaling in social contexts that a screen cannot reach, merch is an analogue display technology that predates digital culture. It is also the oldest form of consensus technology — once printed, these items become snapshots of their creators’ ideologies and aesthetic preferences at a specific moment in time; once worn by community members, they become proof of belonging, proof of collective belief. In this context, alongside “doctrine” that’s given rise to our current era of the social web, works by artists engaging with the creator-protocol layer also appear.