Photography and Surveillance.

sur·veil·lance

noun

1. a watch kept over a person, group, etc., especially over a suspect, prisoner, or the like: The suspects were under police surveillance.

2. supervision or superintendence.

The word ‘Surveillance’ when referring to photography to me, straight away, promises intellectual and aesthetic excitement. An unknown photograph – is it seen as invasion or just simply an insight into how other people live? Depending on the viewer there is many conceptions of the way in which photographs categorised as surveillance will be perceived. After all, in this modern period CCTV records the majority of our footsteps and tracks; so is a still image really any different?

Shizuka Yokomizo

"Stranger" (1998 – 2000)

After numerous attempts at photographing unsuspecting people by getting a glimpse of them through their flat windows, Yokomizo became frustrated by the one-sidedness of what she as trying to achieve. She felt it was a vital point that the subject, a stranger, felt the same way about her when she photographed them, therefore wanted them to make eye contact to show awareness of her existence. Thus lead to Yokomizo creating a simple, anonymous letter that contained the possibility of agreement and a time to contemplate taking part with in the project. Her project reveals a shadowy, indistinct boundary between public and private. As this was a planned event, the subject would have chosen their appearance, maybe also the way in which the room they were photographed in looked. Objects that usually seem basic become thorough and intimate. They become more noticeable in a photograph where as on a daily basis maybe unrecognized or noticed. But more importantly, the tension that is created within the series of photographs between the subject and Yokomizo herself creates the feeling of surveillance.

Shizuka Yokomizo
Stranger no. 1 - 1998 - 2000

Shizuka Yokomizo
"Stranger no. 2" - 1998 - 2000

Sophie Calle

“L’Hotel” (1981)

Very similar to a detective or crime photographer, Sophie Calle created “L’Hotel” over a period of three weeks whilst working as a temporary chambermaid in a hotel in Venice. This allowed her to spy on guests and photograph the way in which they left their rooms. A sort of insight into the way other people live.  The role of the objects she photographs is dependent upon the viewer’s perspective, allowing them to create the own story about the unknown person in which the items belong too. 

Sophie Calle
"The Hotel; Room 28" - 1986

Sophie Calle
'The Hotel; Room 46" - 1986