The Digital Panopticon: Please Watch Me! is an artistic investigation into the digital present and contemporary identity, which is increasingly exposed, observed, and filtered.
With ten participating artists, Arteaportè lands for the first time in Gozo, to open a ‘new frontier in contemporary art’ with an international exhibition organized in collaboration with Arthall that’s free to visit. Ten artists were selected to participate in this project.
The exhibition is inspired by the concept of the panopticon developed by the English philosopher Jeremy Bentham, a circular prison with a central watchtower from which all inmates can be observed without knowing if or when they are being watched. Today, this model of surveillance has been internalized, transforming into a voluntary desire for total exposure. In an era dominated by radical transparency, smart technologies, and artificial intelligence, what does it mean to be human? What is the cost of full visibility and absolute efficiency?
“I am really pleased that Arteaportè is collaborating with us to bring contemporary art to a wider audience, making it accessible everywhere and for everyone,” says Marta Obiols Fornell, curator of ArtHall. “This is the first time that this international platform, based in Italy, has come to Malta and it is bringing a very powerful concept: the digital panopticon.”
“It’s no longer about watchtowers, neighbours, or old ladies behind the curtains,” she continues. “We are now willing to be constantly observed under the ever-present digital gaze.”
In the show, one of the artists, Sergio Muscat, brilliantly encapsulates the meaning of this exhibition with an innovative art installation, ‘You Are Safe’.
“‘You are safe’ is an executable programme that uses a camera connected to a TV to capture the image of whoever is near the camera,” Muscat explains. “The image is converted into repeated text “You are safe.” It highlights our society’s reliance on being observed, and the illusion of safety that it brings. It highlights how we as a society freely give up our freedom and privacy and hand it over to corporations and governments in order to feel protected.”
And with this exhibition, ArtHall invites us all to reflect on our hyperconnected present and the progressive loss of depth, complexity, and narrative.
And perhaps, whether we are safer because of it?
The exhibition runs from October 4 – 12. For more details visit ArtHall on-line or follow them on Facebook.
