You Are Here & Surveillance Is Everywhere! (2013)
Mixed media — photo on sketchpad
These works explore the architecture of power — the systems, buildings, and invisible networks that shape our sense of self. I am interested in how subjectivity is observed, examined, and administered within the biopolitical matrix.
What does it mean to become a node in an algorithmic calculation? Are we being reduced to sets of data? If so, how does this transformation alter our existence? Who designs, controls, and watches this matrix — and to what end? Are we, in turn, becoming vigilantes of our own visibility?
“I am vigilant of my ideas and yours, and how we spread them.”
The reflections in this work resonate with Michel Foucault’s analyses of surveillance, power, and discipline. They also connect to contemporary debates on data control and algorithmic governance.
Two thought-provoking readings on this topic include:
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Naomi Klein, “As the coronavirus continues to kill thousands each day, tech companies are seizing the opportunity to extend their reach and power” — The Guardian, 2020.
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Colin Koopman, “The Work on Power” — originally published in 2016 and republished by AEON Magazine.
(Last revised: 14/05/2020)
We are left with an open question: What control do we truly have over our data?
Keywords: Panopticon, Power, Vigilance, Discipline and Punish, Biopolitics.