The art of Hito Steyerl

Hito Steyerl’s video essay “Hito Steyerl_How Not To Be Seen_ A Fucking Didactic Educational .MOV File” masquerades as a training video, complete with a classical robotic narration and five absurd lessons on vanishing. The video itself included political jokes about the disappearance of people that were enemies of the state, and sexist jokes such as “women above the age of 50 being invisible” to make the video entertaining whilst reflecting social issues. Beneath Steyerl’s humor lies a Marxist-feminist critique of how images govern bodies and power. The 16 minute work fuses archival footage from satellite images, green screen animations produced by her crew, and U.S. Air Force resolution targets to interrogate the topic of ‘visibility’ in the modern age of informational technology, where drone technology and data capitalism are becoming more and more advanced. Steyerl’s intention of making this video is to expose visibility as a weapon. The opening shot lingers on a Californian desert g...