We Never Sleep: Exhibition Catalogue Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt

Espionage is linked to obtaining rare secrets or confidential information without the permission of the beholder. In times of digital communication, private individuals have the capacity to reveal hidden governmental secrets or whistle-blowers can fight their government’s spying on their own citizens. This book is dedicated to the fascination of espionage as source of current artistic inspiration. International artists address the topic from a contemporary perspective with their works touching aspects of espionage such as surveillance, paranoia, threat, camouflage, cryptography, manipu lation, cold-blood, and betrayal. The book presents a multitude of artistic strategies as well as unexpected objects and touches the golden age of espionage during the Cold War, as well as the context of media super-exposure.