Martina Beate Geissler

Martina Beate Geissler is an Associate Professor of Art at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She collaborates with Oliver Sann, focusing on the intersections of knowledge, power, and technology in Western culture, particularly how humans are transformed through technological systems. Their work critically examines the boundaries between factual documentation and constructed realities, engaging with media and technology's inherent biases.

At the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG), Department I, they are developing the project Hopium Economy, which contextualizes the opioid crisis in the Midwestern USA within broader socio-political frameworks, including public health systems, pharmaceutical industries, racial tensions, and de-industrialization. The project redefines addiction as a core existential mode linked to the Anthropocene's challenges.

They have received notable awards such as the Videonale Award and Herman-Claasen-Award, alongside grants from the Graham Foundation and Humanities without Walls. Their artistic work has been exhibited internationally in institutions like the Museum of Contemporary Photography (Chicago), Fotomuseum Antwerp, and the German Pavilion at the Photography Biennial Dubai, UAE.

• Scientific Awards & Grants
  • Videonale Award, Bonn, Germany
  • Herman-Claasen-Award, Cologne, Germany
  • Graham Foundation Production Grant, Chicago
  • Humanities without Walls Grant