Abstract The German Democratic Republic undertook mass surveillance of its citizens during the period 1950–1989 undertaken by its secret police service, which took the form of documents, audio recordings, moving footage, and approximately two million photographs. In late 1989 and early 1990, citizens of the GDR stormed the offices of the Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the Stasi, following a series of revolutions that shook Eastern Europe, marking the end of the postwar era and the division of Germany. Citizens occupied offices in Berlin, Leipzig, and other locations in order to halt the destruction of files by staff officials under orders to erase traces of its unlawful state surveillance actions. The regime is known for the precise rendering of its nation’s citizens in observational reports and photographic recordings and this article considers the ways in which photography was utilized by the surveillance regime to infiltrate everyday lives. Further, the article examines in what ways these photographs reveal various surveillance techniques and indicate its limits in what can be considered as inadequate or illegible photographs. Lastly, it considers the remedial possibilities of the Stasi archive and its afterlife, or extra-archival legacy via artistic mediation.

中文翻译：

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斯塔西监视照片和档案外遗产

摘要 德意志民主共和国在 1950 年至 1989 年期间对其公民进行了由其秘密警察部门进行的大规模监视，这些监视采取文件、录音、移动镜头和大约 200 万张照片的形式。在 1989 年底和 1990 年初，东欧发生了一系列动摇东欧的革命，标志着战后时代的结束和德国的分裂，东德公民冲进了国家安全部（俗称斯塔西）的办公室。公民占领了柏林、莱比锡和其他地方的办公室，以阻止工作人员根据命令清除其非法国家监视行动的痕迹来销毁文件。该政权以其在观察报告和摄影记录中对其国家公民的精确呈现而闻名，本文探讨了监视政权利用摄影渗透日常生活的方式。此外，文章还研究了这些照片以何种方式揭示了各种监视技术，并指出了其在被视为不适当或难以辨认的照片方面的局限性。最后，它考虑了史塔西档案及其来世的补救可能性，或通过艺术中介的档案外遗产。文章研究了这些照片以何种方式揭示了各种监视技术，并指出了其在被认为是不适当或难以辨认的照片方面的局限性。最后，它考虑了史塔西档案及其来世的补救可能性，或通过艺术中介的档案外遗产。文章研究了这些照片以何种方式揭示了各种监视技术，并指出了其在被认为是不适当或难以辨认的照片方面的局限性。最后，它考虑了史塔西档案及其来世的补救可能性，或通过艺术中介的档案外遗产。