Artists: Cory Arcangel & Hanne Mugaas, Judith Fegerl, Nicolas Grospierre & Kobas Laksa, Dariusz Kowalski, Paul Laffoley, Mark Lombardi, Rachel Owens, Florian & Michaël Quistrebert, Gerold Tagwerker, Tris Vonna-Michell, Flora Watzal, Clemens von Wedemeyer, and Jordan Wolfson

Emerging from various concepts illuminated by George Orwell in his novel 1984, this exhibition considers forms of surveillance and control today, examining the evolution of imagery and language in what has been described as our panoptic era. The selected artists, all of whom live and work in Europe and the United States, question the effects of surveillance on the subject, but also explore the possibility of its subversive usage by the subject through a variety of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, video and installation.

Four overlapping themes compose this topical contemporary survey. One addresses visuality and control, where forms of surveillance, or counter-surveillance, and systems of visual control are inverted or exposed, revealing their inherent blind spots. Departing from more concrete conceptions, another approach deals with surreality, surveillance and the subconscious, linking together various visual perceptions, and often touching on the occult and science-fiction. Another angle is dedicated to architectural representations as both tools of power and control, as well as models for utopia through an investigation of urban environments. A final focus investigates the alienation inherent in contemporary language, which is especially apparent in modern communication reliant on the use of new technology.

Concept: Andreas Stadler Curators: David Harper, Martha Kirszenbaum and David Komary