When Hasan Elahi was erroneously added to the US Government’s watch list and subsequently subjected to an FBI investigation, the University of Maryland professor decided to cooperate in a major way! He threw away his personal privacy and gave the feds almost up-to-the-minute updates on himself and his whereabouts through photos, GPS monitoring, emails and website surveillance.
Thousand Little Brothers, an exhibit set to take place at Maryland Art Place from January 24 – March 23, 2013, tells Hasan Elahi’s story. The project is comprised of over 50,000 images collected over a year period along with screenshots of his financial data, communications records, and transportation logs.
“I’m simultaneously telling you everything and nothing; it is the analysis that is important, not the data,” Hasan says. “By becoming incredibly public, I’ve become very private.”
This multimedia exhibition builds on a series of installations, performances, and websites that use Elahi’s self-surveillance to critique contemporary investigative techniques.
For more information on the exhibit opening next week, visit marylandartplace.org.