Eyes In The Shadow

CHEN SU

WORKS

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EYES IN THE SHADOW
视线之外

Installation Design
Individual Project
2025

如今，监控技术已经深度融入我们的日常生活。从公共空间中的 CCTV 摄像头到我们随身携带的智能手机，我们几乎始终身处于一个由各种监控设备构成的网络之中。人们逐渐习惯了这种“无形的凝视”，并在不知不觉中接受了它对个人隐私的侵蚀。与此同时，监控技术也为社会带来了安全与便利——它能够震慑犯罪，并帮助人们在紧急情况下迅速作出反应。如何在安全与隐私之间寻找平衡，也因此成为现代社会面临的重要问题之一。

近年来，监控现实主义（Surveillance Realism）这一概念受到越来越多的关注。监控已经不再只是一种技术工具，而逐渐成为影响人类行为、心理以及社会关系的社会议题。我们享受着监控技术带来的安全与便利，却常常忽视一个事实：我们也始终处于被观看的状态之中。

这个项目的灵感来源于 Harcourt 在 Exposed 一书中的一段论述：“我们如今生活在一个展示型社会，一个关于暴露与展示的社会。它采用了玻璃展馆般的建筑结构，在这里，我们不仅被他人观看，同时也在其中玩耍、探索、自拍，并拍摄他人。”这段话揭示了现代社会中不断扩大的公共暴露现象，同时指出了一个矛盾的状态：我们既是观看者，也是被观看者，并不断在这两种身份之间转换。

通过 THE EYES IN THE SHADOW，我希望利用直观的视觉叙事与互动体验，呈现监控技术对于个人隐私与身份认知所产生的深层影响。在一个越来越数字化、同时也越来越倾向于自我暴露的社会中，这件作品试图邀请观众重新思考：当“观看”与“被观看”逐渐成为日常，我们应该如何定义自己，又该如何保护日益脆弱的私人空间？

Nowadays, surveillance technology has become deeply integrated into our daily lives. From public CCTV cameras to smartphones, we all exist within a network of surveillance. People have gradually grown accustomed to this “invisible gaze,” silently accepting the erosion of privacy it entails. At the same time, surveillance provides security and convenience—it deters crime and enables rapid responses to emergencies. This delicate balance between security and privacy has become one of the core challenges of modern society.

In recent years, the concept of “Surveillance Realism” has become increasingly prominent. Surveillance has evolved beyond being merely a technical tool to become an issue that influences our behaviour, psychology, and social relationships. We enjoy the conveniences that surveillance offers, but we often tend to overlook the fact that we are constantly being watched.

The inspiration for this project comes from Harcourt’s compelling observation in Exposed: “We now live in an expository society, a society of exposure and exhibition, which adopts the architectural structure of a glass pavilion, where we are not merely seen, but where we ‘play and explore, selfie and shoot others.’” This statement underscores the phenomenon of public exposure in modern society and reveals the paradox of individuals continuously oscillating between being observed and observing.

Through THE EYES IN THE SHADOW, I want to reveal the profound impact that surveillance technologies have on personal privacy and identity through intuitive visual storytelling and interactive experience. The project encourages viewers to reflect on how, in an increasingly digital and exposure-driven society, we define ourselves and protect our increasingly fragile private spaces.

观众进入装置后，最初会以“观察者（Observer）”的身份观看投影屏幕中出现的多个监控画面。然而，随着互动逐渐深入，屏幕开始出现观众自己的实时影像。直到这一刻，他们才突然意识到：自己其实从进入这个空间开始，就已经成为了被监控的对象。观众的身份也由此从“观察者”转变为“被观察者”。在体验的最后，画面进一步切换至电脑自身的摄像头视角。通过这一变化，我希望提醒观众：在我们的日常生活中，那些习以为常甚至被忽视的摄像头，也可能在我们没有意识到的时候持续记录着我们的行为，并潜在地侵入我们的私人空间。

这个项目主要面向数字原住民，以及对他人隐私抱有好奇的人群。通过不断转换参与者“观察者”与“被观察者”的身份，作品试图挑战人们对于隐私与安全、便利与自由之间关系的既有认知，并进一步引发关于监控伦理、隐私权以及技术潜在滥用等问题的讨论。

Audiences are invited to step into a simulated surveillance space. Initially, they are the “observers,” watching multiple scenes on projection screens. However, as the interaction develops, the screens gradually begin to reveal images of the participants themselves, making them suddenly aware that they have been under surveillance all along. They shift from being the observer to being observed. At the end, the image shifts to the laptop webcam. Through this transition, I want to remind people that in our everyday lives, many overlooked cameras may be quietly invading our privacy at any moment.

The project’s target audience includes digital natives and people who are curious about others’ privacy. By continuously shifting participants between the roles of “observer” and “observed,” the installation challenges established ideas about the balance between privacy and security, convenience and freedom. It also aims to spark thoughtful discussions around surveillance ethics, the right to privacy, and the potential misuse of technology.

EYES IN THE SHADOW
视线之外

Installation Design
Individual Project
2025

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Shanghai & London, 2021-2025.