Stasi City

1997 • Directed by

Louise Wilson

History

This four-channel video installation was shot inside the abandoned headquarters of the defunct East German secret police—unofficially called Stasi City— a few years after the reunification of Germany. Images of the labyrinth of abandoned corridors, interrogation rooms, and open and closed doors are accompanied by a soundtrack of the clanging, buzzing, and clicking sounds that would have been emitted by surveillance equipment when police occupied the building. Stasi City is an imprint of the haunting memories embedded in architecture.