Paolo Cirio – OVEREXPOSED Opening: 22 May, 6pm 23 May - 20 July 2015 Tuesday - Saturday, 2-6pm
NOME Dolziger Straße 31, 10247 Berlin www.nomeproject.com NOME Gallery is very pleased to inaugurate its exhibition programme in Berlin with new works by conceptual artist Paolo Cirio. His solo show ‚Overexposed' will open on 22 May and run until 20 July 2015. With his public intervention Cirio disseminates unauthorized pictures of high-ranking U.S. intelligence officials throughout major cities. The artist obtained snapshots of NSA, CIA, and FBI officers through social media hacks. Then, using his HD Stencils graffiti technique, he spray-paints high-resolution reproductions of the misappropriated photos onto public walls. New modes of circulation, appropriation, contextualization, and technical reproduction of images are integrated into this artwork. In this exhibition, NOME presents the nine subjects of the ‚Overexposed' series painted on canvas and photographic paper. The project considers the aftermath of Edward Snowden’s revelations and targets some of the officials responsible for programs of mass surveillance or for misleading the public about them. Cirio's open-source intelligence (OSINT) utilizes intelligence collected from publicly available sources to satirize both an era of ubiquitous mass surveillance and overly mediated political personas. The officials targeted in the ‚Overexposed' series are Keith Alexander (NSA), John Brennan (CIA), Michael Hayden (NSA), Michael Rogers (NSA), James Comey (FBI), James Clapper (NSA), David Petraeus (CIA), Caitlin Hayden (NSC), and Avril Haines (NSA). Cirio’s political satire reverses the contemporary means of propaganda, exposing the extent to which a public image can be captured on camera and exploited by the very same systems that intelligence officials seek to control. ‚Overexposed' derides the watchers with embarrassing pictures over which they have lost control, effectively turning the tables on them and their advocacy of mass surveillance and lax privacy practices. Paolo Cirio (*1979) conceptually explores various issues in economics, democracy, privacy, transparency and copyright. His work has been exhibited at prestigious institutions including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Denver and the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art. He was honored by Ars Electronica with the Golden Nica in 2014. More information on the NOME website: http://www.nomeproject.com/exhibitions/overexposed Images of the artworks and interventions may be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/nomeproject/albums Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/450645295093909/
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