SURVEIL ME
TOUCHDESIGNER, LIVE VISUALS, NEW MEDIA, PERSONAL PROJECT, WORK IN PROGRESS [11.24]
How is surveillance affecting and perceiving queer joy?
Queerness is in constant surveillance on numerous levels. From the state, cameras and policing maintain a specific status quo. Decades of queer liberation have been met with intense governmental backlash, ranging from raids on LGBTQ+ spaces to willful ignorance of global health crises. Corporations commodify queerness, monitoring queer culture and reacting in order to maximize attention and profits. Our interpersonal relationships manifest judgements and opinions purely through impression — for queer people, this can be immediate categorization of our physical presentation or interests. My project is particularly interested in surveillance of queer joy. Queer joy can be seen through the lens of sex and sexuality — after all, this is one of the foundations of what defines the LGBTQ+ community. There is also late night/club culture, where people gather in order to escape from the harsh realities of discrimination and work.