SMILE! You’re on CCTV

University project (BA-level) – 9 weeks, individual project – 2022

Brief: Design an immersive experience about something that is out of sight and overlooked in London for the newly opened Now Arcade at Outernet London.

Now Arcade is a LED tunnel that’s designed for augmented and immersive experiences in the heart of London. I decided to explore the use of CCTV cameras in London as it is the world’s third most surveilled city per capita.

My intention was for the viewers to leave the space feeling uncomfortable and aware that they were being watched all the time. I also aimed for them to feel awkward about watching others. I dedicated one side of the arcade to the idea of being watched, and the other to the idea of watching others. The roof was designed to be stressful and divide the two walls into separate entities. The sound design together with the visuals imposed an ominous feeling of broken-down technology.

The concept was to put 4 CCTV cameras around the space and show the camera footage on one of the walls, some live and some with delays, so the visitors would be able to view themselves and others that have been in the space earlier. The other wall would feature a wall of animated CCTV cameras that move in sync. Unfortunately, I was unable to fulfil my plan as we didn’t have permission from Outernet London to realize any of our ideas. However, I made an animation to simulate the immersive experience.

As the space is a thoroughfare it was important that the viewers could experience the installation from either end and for as long as they wanted, making sure that it did not require a beginning or end.