2009 Recipient of Siemens RMIT Fine Art Scholarship Award (Post Graduate)
MARITA LILLIE
SURVEILLANCE SOCIETY
Master of Arts (Art in Public Space)
Abstract:
Surveillance Society is an investigation of the increased use of surveillance in contemporary society and its association with photography. Projects will explore various interpretations of surveillance while questioning the ethics and legalities of this ever-expanding phenomenon. Mediums including installation, video, drawing, painting and photography are combined to create artworks that reflect the issues surrounding the ongoing political debate regarding surveillance as a means to ‘control society’. I will be addressing the relationship and status between the photographer and his subjects compared with being the subject of surveillance in a public space. Research will be conducted on the theories surrounding the ‘Panopticon concept’ devised by Jeremy Bentham and further developed by Michel Foucault.
Research Question:
What is the impact of increased surveillance in contemporary society and how does it relate to the problematic nature of street photography today?
Context:
This research is worth doing as it is important to create a dialogue and debate regarding the necessity for authorities to use surveillance as a means to control society. In contrast it is becoming more difficult and problematic for photographers to take images in public space. I wish to highlight the moral and ethical issues surrounding privacy and consent with regard to surveillance and photography. Photography in public space is integral in creating and expressing various art practices. We need to understand and address these issues in the context of public and private.
Method:
In developing an overview of the impact of surveillance in society, I will be conducting photographic, video and installation works in galleries and public space. These works will include specific sites that have existing surveillance networks, such as, public housing estates, city laneways, university campuses, train stations and shopping centres. My process will involve various works reflecting these concerns that question the practice of consenting photography and ‘Big Brother’ theory in public space. Six projects will be completed over a two-year period.
Outcomes:
Project outcomes as follows:
#1 An outdoor project completed in a public space, without permission.
#2 An outdoor Art project installed on a billboard in the City of Melbourne, in conjuction with APN Outdoor Advertising.
#3 An exhibition at First Site Gallery, RMIT University
#4 Three Art projects in Public Space at specifically nominated public art sites.
Night Screen, Seventh Gallery, Fitzroy.
Majorca Windows, Platform Artists Space, Melbourne.
Trocadero Billboard, Footscray.
Public Housing Surveillance
