Composed of official committee members and illicit “agents,” the INS harks back to early twentieth-century avant-gardes, producing declarations, reports, public hearings, broadcasts, and research documents, as well as orchestrating more covert media infiltrations, all governed by the objective, set out in the “Founding Manifesto,” of mapping, entering, and occupying the space of death through literature, philosophy, culture, and technology.

Recent encounters between art and real life, the ubiquity of images of violence and humiliation in visual culture and the media, and the persistence of controversial debates on public and participatory art projects are raising fundamental questions about the importance of ethical decisions in art and curating.

This publication focuses on a single work of art: 5,000 Feet is the Best (2011) by artist Omer Fast. With this cinematic video work, Fast has entered into a discussion about one of the most pressing issues today, namely drone surveillance and warfare—that is, the use of unmanned planes operated by “pilots” on the ground.

This publication focuses on “Philippe Parreno,” an exhibition at the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College which consists of a selection of Parreno’s films and collaborative projects.