“Big Brother” is an interactive artwork that only comes to life when someone looks at it.
At first, it seems to be just a portrait. But the moment you look at it, something happens: a pair of eyes appears and looks back. Suddenly, you’re no longer just observing the artwork. The artwork is observing you.
The piece plays with the idea of surveillance in everyday life. It brings back a slightly nostalgic image of “Big Brother”: the mysterious person in a hat and long coat quietly keeping an eye on everyone from a street corner. These days, however, Big Brother has upgraded. Cameras are everywhere, our phones sometimes seem to know what we’re talking about, and now even a portrait might decide to look back.
Participation is an important theme in my work. I’m interested in what happens when viewers become part of the artwork rather than simply standing in front of it. In The Big Brother, all it takes is a glance to set things in motion.
The work is playful, a little unsettling, and hopefully good-humoured. It doesn’t judge, accuse, or offer answers. Instead, it invites us to smile, reflect, and perhaps wonder who is watching whom.