This week, Shane Harris talks with pioneering multi-media artist Laurie Anderson. A retrospective of her work, called “The Weather,” is currently showing at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC. Several of Anderson’s works explore themes of security, terrorism, and surveillance. Her piece “Habeas Corpus” is a monumental scale video and sculpture installation about Mohammed el Gharani, who was imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay for seven years. 

Anderson talks about her life in New York during the pandemic, her creative influences, and the surprising ways that her storytelling intersects with national security. For instance, her biggest musical hit, “O Superman,” was inspired by the Iran hostage crisis. 

Chatter is a production of Lawfare and Goat Rodeo. This episode was produced and edited by Cara Shillenn of Goat Rodeo, with engineering assistance from Ian Enright. Podcast theme by David Priess, featuring music created using Groovepad.

Among the works mentioned in this episode are:

Laurie Anderson: https://laurieanderson.com/ 

“The Weather” at The Hirshhorn: https://hirshhorn.si.edu/exhibitions/laurie-anderson-the-weather/  

“Habeus Corpus”: https://laurieanderson.com/?portfolio=habeas-corpus 

Anderson’s Norton Lectures: https://laurieanderson.com/2021/12/16/norton-lectures-spending-the-war-without-you/ 

“O Superman”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkfpi2H8tOE 

Thao & The Get Down Stay Down's "Phenom": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGwQZrDNLO8

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