Hito Steyerl

Hito Steyerl, a filmmaker and a writer based in Berlin, is perhaps best known for her video essays, which delve into pressing contemporary issues such as globalization, feminism, militarization, and, arguably most central to her practice, the mass proliferation and dissemination of images and knowledge through digital technology. “I am a filmmaker and writer… it just sort of happened that people started calling me an artist,” Steyerl told London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts in 2014. “But I consciously try not to comply with it too much.” Steyerl’s work is fundamentally documentary in form, featuring extensive research, composite imagery, interviews, montage, and first-person voiceovers. Nevertheless, her videos are underlined by a clear awareness of the inherent subjectivity of the medium—that is, of the uncertainty of both moving and still images.


Steyerl studied film at Tokyo’s Academy of Visual Arts and at the University of Television and Film in Munich; she hold a PhD in philosophy from the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. She currently teaches new media art at Berlin’s University of the Arts. Steyerl’s work has been exhibited at dOCUMENTA, Manifesta, the Teipei Biennial, and the Shanghai Biennial, among other European and American institutions.

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Articles

Seven 21st-Century Masterpieces
Seven 21st-Century Masterpieces
We Ranked Hito Steyerl's Online Videos From Best to Best
We Ranked Hito Steyerl's Online Videos From Best to Best
In Their Own Words: 10 Essential Reads Written by Artists
In Their Own Words: 10 Essential Reads Written by Artists
Year in Review: Here Are the Most Talked About Artists of 2017
Year in Review: Here Are the Most Talked About Artists of 2017
How Video Art Took Over the Art World
How Video Art Took Over the Art World
Secrets to Success From the Berlin Biennale
Secrets to Success From the Berlin Biennale
7 Visions of the Future From the 7 x 7 Conference
7 Visions of the Future From the 7 x 7 Conference
José Freire on How He Built Team Gallery
José Freire on How He Built Team Gallery
5 Key Works That Chart the Digital Art Revolution
5 Key Works That Chart the Digital Art Revolution
What Does 2016 Hold for the Art World?
What Does 2016 Hold for the Art World?
How to Pronounce Artists' Names, Vol. 5
How to Pronounce Artists' Names, Vol. 5
6 Artworks to Invest in This September
6 Artworks to Invest in This September
The New Manifestos: 6 Artist Texts to Know
The New Manifestos: 6 Artist Texts to Know