The modern viewer is familiar with the cinematic paradigm, in which he or she is fixed in a darkened auditorium. In this case, the projected image acts as a viewing window into the picture space. However, the current audio-visual technologies introduce new viewing modes. This thesis traces the spatial evolution of the projection system (projector, picture, screen surface, projection beam), during the transition from analogue to digital technology, in inter-war experimental film, 1960s expanded cinema, video art and current multimedia installations. The work of the Australian-born new media artist and researcher Jeffrey Shaw is used as a case-study. Shaw emerged from the performance, expanded cinema and installation paradigms of the 1960s, currently being a leading figure in new media art.