On the occasion of her exhibition Duty-Free Art at the Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid, Metrópolis presents a feature on Hito Steyerl, one of the most influential audiovisual artists of the past decade.
Hito Steyerl (Munich, 1966; lives and works in Berlin) studied camera work in Tokyo and documentary filmmaking in Munich. In her work she investigates the contemporary moving image, developing an interdisciplinary discourse between art, philosophy and politics which takes the form of video works, theoretical writings and performance lectures. Extrapolating the essay format towards open-ended speculation, she juxtaposes reality and fiction in order to reflect on the impact of images in contemporary society and to expose the close relationship between military, entertainment and information industries in the production of these images.
Since 2004, Hito Steyerl has participated in numerous international art events and film festivals; Duty-Free Art is the first comprehensive exhibition of her
