SYNOPTICON

Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, St.Louis, USA
April 5, 2021 - July 25, 2021
Installation Dimension: 2.1m x 3.6m x 3.6m 
Wood, two-way mirrored film, and contact paper 

Synopticon is a spatial installation which is made out of a two-way mirrored film and it represents acitivity on social media thesedays. Two-way mirrored film with one side acting as a window and the other as a reflective barrier reflects visuality of social media to reveal my private life and to see  private lives of other people. Spectators can play hide and seek while wandering around the installation, shifting from between the role of the observer or the observed, depending on which side of the mirrored film they stand. A form of installation resembles a maze. Considering that the pleasure of a maze is aimed to imprison people, a playful feature of the installation cannot be conceived only in the context of entertainment and so does social media as well.  

During this installation was making and showing, COVID-19 pandemic broke out and spread out around the world. Korea government has been mandating a policy that people must cerify their identities, body temperatures, and if they are vaccinated or not via QR code wherever they go. It shows a contemporary surveillance system in which exposure of personal information and privacy are becoming inevitable in the pursuit of safety and health. The QR code on the floor alludes to the current reality of surveillance hidden behind enjoyable play in the installation.  

Modeling of Synopticon, 18 x 30 x 30cm, Wood, two-way mirrored film, and contact paper, 2020

photo by Brian Cui, Richard Sprengeler and Younsir Seri Lee


Pictures uploaded by spectators to their social media during the duration of the show, 2021