Manifesta purposely strives to keep its distance from what are often seen as the dominant centres of artistic production, instead seeking fresh and fertile terrain for the mapping of a new cultural topography.

PENG! Collective, DE

Peng! collective, Call-A-Spy, 2016 – ongoing © Manifesta 12 / Wolfgang Träger

Installation at Palazzo Ajutamicristo

In this installation by the German collective Peng! visitors could directly and anonymously telephone agents of the FBI, NSA and Department of Homeland Security in the US, the Verfassungsschutz and BND in Germany, and the Direction Générale de la Sécurité Intérieure in France. Through a secret database with over 5000 telephone numbers, the installation allowed visitors to hold a private telephone conversation with the people who are monitoring the population.