exhibition view Anonymous, I'll be there in 30 Minutes, 2011; Archiv Valentina Tanni,The Great Wall of Memes, 2012-2014 Courtesy: Anonymous: Anonymous; Valentina Tanni: the artist, Anonymous Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Hito Steyerl, Strike, 2010; Simon Denny, The Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom, 2013/2014 Courtesy: Hito Steyerl: the artist; Simon Denny: the artist; Galerie Buchholz Berlin/Cologne Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Archiv Valentina Tanni, The Great Wall of Memes, 2012-2014; Simon Denny, The Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom, 2013/2014 Courtesy: Valentina Tanni: the artist, Anonymous; Simon Denny: the artist; Galerie Buchholz Berlin/Cologne Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Seth Price, How to disappear in America, 2014 Courtesy: the artist Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Simon Denny, The Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom, 2013/2014; Seth Price, How to disappear in America, 2014; !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Random Darknet Shopper, 2014 Courtesy: Simon Denny: the artist; Galerie Buchholz Berlin/Cologne; Seth Price: the artist; !Mediengruppe Bitnik: the artists Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Simon Denny, The Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom, 2013/2014; Hito Steyerl, Strike, 2010; Archiv Valentina Tanni,The Great Wall of Memes, 2012-2014; Seth Price, How to disappear in America, 2014 Courtesy: Simon Denny: the artist; Galerie Buchholz Berlin/Cologne; Hito Steyerl: the artist; Valentina Tanni: the artist, Anonymous; Seth Price: the artist Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view xhacker02, Artwork by Anonymous Courtesy: xhacker02 Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Heath Bunting, Status Project, 2004-2014; Robert Sakrowski, Anonymous: A Shared Identity in The Era of a Global Networked Society, 2014/2011 Courtesy: Heath Bunting: the artist; Robert Sakrowski: the artist; Anonymous Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Robert Sakrowski, Anonymous: A Shared Identity in The Era of a Global Networked Society, 2014/2011 Courtesy: the artist; Anonymous Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Heath Bunting, Status Project, 2004-2014, (detail) Courtesy: the artist Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Random Darknet Shopper, 2014; Eva and Franco Mattes, Emily's Video, 2012 Courtesy: !Mediengruppe Bitnik: the artists; Eva and Franco Mattes: the artists; Carroll/Fletcher, London Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Eva and Franco Mattes, Emily's Video, 2012; !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Random Darknet Shopper, 2014 Courtesy: Eva and Franco Mattes: the artists; Carroll/Fletcher, London; !Mediengruppe Bitnik: the artists Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Aram Bartholl, Forgot YourPassword?, 2013, (detail) Courtesy: the artist; DAM Gallery, Berlin Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view Aram Bartholl, Forgot YourPassword?, 2013 Courtesy: the artist; DAM Gallery, Berlin Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Random Darknet Shopper, 2014, (detail) Courtesy: the artists Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Random Darknet Shopper, 2014, (detail) Courtesy:the artists Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
exhibition view tor-router Photo: Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Gunnar Meier.
In Cooperation With !Mediengruppe Bitnik And :Digital Brainstorming
The Darknet – From Memes to Onionland. An Exploration
18 October 2014–11 January 2015
With 11 artists: !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Anonymous, Cory Arcangel, Aram Bartholl, Heath Bunting, Simon Denny, Eva and Franco Mattes, Seth Price, Robert Sakrowski, Hito Steyerl, Valentina Tanni
The following text is an artwork by Cory Arcangel
(Cory Archangel, Behaviour targeting, 2014; Courtesy: the artist)
The Deep Web is an encrypted, invisible, deep network that cannot be accessed by Chrome, Firefox, or Safari but is nevertheless used by millions of hackers. This Deep Web is the impulse for cooperation between the artist collective !Mediengruppe Bitnik (Carmen Weisskopf and Domagoj Smoljo), the Deep Web project :digital brainstorming from Migros-Kulturprozent and Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen. Hacker communications systems which penetrate everyday life but which are largely unknown to the public will be examined with the help of artists, theoreticians and Deep Web hackers. The exhibition «The Deep Web – From Memes to Onionland. An Exploration» will open Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen for interdisciplinary Deep Web interpretations of copyright, hacking, privacy, illegality and resistance.
The Deep Web has a bad reputation: drugs, weapons, pornography, stolen data and forged documents can be bought from hackers there. However, since Edward Snowden is awesome, his revelations seem to have shifted this one-sided perception. The Deep Web is an apparently power-free space. The participants want to take this factor seriously as critical individuals and articulate its non-transparent mechanisms and systems. For example, !Mediengruppe Bitnik transports the Deep Web into the art space while Emily’s Video by Eva and Franco Mattes compiles the reactions of people watching a mysterious video, which had been sourced from the Darknet, that was later destroyed. Cory Arcangel optimizes this very webpage so search engines like Google can easily locate it. Other artists deal with Deep Web phenomena that also exist between anonymity and commerce: Robert Sakrowski is curating YouTube videos on the history of hacktivist group Anonymous, Valentina Tanni is making available her collection of her best memes and Simon Denny will provoke questions about big data interchange. Heath Bunting examines data storage devices in relation to identity networks by means of gift cards, American Express credit cards or iPhones. An online identity can also be deleted – as Seth Price demonstrates with how to disappear in america.
The Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen links the Surface web and the Deep Web which are interlocked – From Memes to Onionland. Aware of the dangers of the Deep Web, an approach from multiple perspectives is intended. It is an attempt to grasp this extremely controversial phenomenon of hacking the Deep Web with artistic contributions, archive material, workshops and discussions. The format of the exhibition gives visitors access to the Deep Web and questions familiar notions – Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen can now also be found on the Deep Web at http://vtw7g7wcdsgxq4ru.onion/ (only with a tor-browser).
The exhibition is a cooperation with the project :digital brainstorming of Migros-Kulturprozent. Special thanks to Ernst Göhner Stiftung, Jubiläumsstiftung der Schweizerischen Mobiliar Genossenschaft, Ortsbürgergemeinde St.Gallen and Fredy & Regula Lienhard-Stiftung for their generous support.
Special thanks go to Prof. Dr. Felix Stalder for exchanging ideas and knowledge and the cooperation. We also thank Dr. iur. Bruno Glaus for the help in legal matters.
Opening and book launch: Fr, 17 October 2014, 6 p.m.
2 Guided Tours: Tues, 21 October 2014, 6 p.m., Sun, 11 January 2015, 3 p.m.
Introductory Evening for Teachers: Tues, 21 October 2014, 6 p.m.
Art Lunch: Thurs, 6 November, 12 p.m.
Concert Jetpack Bellerive: Thurs, 6 November 2014, 8 p.m.
Art activities for kids: Wed, 19 November, 2 p.m.
Art Snack: Wed, 26 November, 12.30 p.m.
Workshop for Families: Sun, 30 November 2014, 2 p.m.
6 Deep Web Education events: Art Tutorial I: Sat, 18 October 2014, 12 p.m.
Artist Statements I: Sat, 18 October 2014, 4.30 p.m.
Discussion «Digitale Leibeigenschaften»: Thurs, 30 October 2014, 8 p.m.
Art Tutorial II: Sat, 6 December 2014, 2 p.m. until 4 p.m.
Artist Statements II: Sat, 6 December 2014, 4.30 p.m.
Video-screening: Tues, 9 December 2014, 8.15 p.m.
!Mediengruppe Bitnik: Carmen Weisskopf: *1976 in Basel (CH), lives and works in Zurich; Domagoj Smoljo: *1979 in St. Gallen (CH), lives and works in Zurich
Anonymous – Presenting in the exhibtion I'll be there in 30 Minutes, 2011
Cory Arcangel: *1978 in Buffalo (USA), lives and works in New York
Aram Bartholl: *1972 in Bremen (D), lives and works in Berlin
Heath Bunting: *1966 in London (UK), lives and works i.a. in Bristol
Simon Denny: *1982 in Auckland (NZ), lives and works in Berlin
Eva und Franco Mattes: *1976 in Brescia (I), live and work in New York
Seth Price: *1973 in Jerusalem (IL), lives and works in New York
Robert Sakrowski: *1966 in Berlin (D), lives and works in Berlin
Hito Steyerl*1966 in Munich (D), lives and works in Berlin
Valentina Tanni: *1976 in Rome (I), lives and works in Rom e
Tuesday, 17 December 2024, 6pm
Thursday, 13 February 2025, 12pm