Exhibition catalogue, Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, edited by Cristina Ricupero, Alexandra Midal, Katharina Dohm
Texts (German/English) by Jörg Heiser, Jelena Martinovic, Cristina Ricupero, Noam Toran, Marina Otero Verzier, Wladimir Velminski
184 p. with 100 colour illustrations
Format 27 x 20 cm, gatefold brochure
34,00 €
The Schirn's exhibition team asks this question, because the fascinating power of espionage is always a source of artistic inspiration, and so it is not surprising that numerous international artists deal with the strategies of secrecy in their works. As glamourous as spies are presented in popular culture, the information they gather in covert actions is socially explosive. Whereas in the past individuals or states were spied on by national governments, in times of digital communication citizens make state secrets public, or whistleblowers denounce the spying on the population by their own government. In their works, contemporary artists deal with aspects of espionage such as surveillance, paranoia, threat and camouflage, cryptography, manipulation, cold-bloodedness and betrayal. With a variety of artistic strategies and astonishing objects, the "golden age" of espionage during the Cold War is made just as visible as the current negotiation of media screening.
Artists in the exhibition:
Thomas Demand, Simon Denny, Stan Douglas, Charles and Ray Eames, Forensic Architecture, Rodney Graham, Eva Grubinger, Alfredo Jaar, Gabriel Lester, Metahaven, Trevor Paglen, Cornelia Schleime, Taryn Simon, Noam Toran, Suzanne Treister, Nomeda & Gediminas Urbonas and others.
Exhibition:
Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, 24/9/2020 - 10/1/2021
