The Panopticon
flyer
flyer
The 36th issue of Graphic Magazine aimed to distribute a collection of political flyers created by various artists and designers, in response to the current political situation of the Republic of Korea. I worked in collaboration with Heesun Kim to create a flyer, and participated in this issue.
Panopticon is a Greek word which derives from the words ‘pan’ which means ‘all’, and ‘opticon’ which means ‘observe’. It is a type of an institutional building where all inmates are observed by a single watchman, without knowing whether or not they are being watched. Although the watchman cannot physically watch all the inmates at once, the inmates cannot know when they are being watched and so they must act as though they are watched at all times even if the watchman is not present.
Panopticon is a Greek word which derives from the words ‘pan’ which means ‘all’, and ‘opticon’ which means ‘observe’. It is a type of an institutional building where all inmates are observed by a single watchman, without knowing whether or not they are being watched. Although the watchman cannot physically watch all the inmates at once, the inmates cannot know when they are being watched and so they must act as though they are watched at all times even if the watchman is not present.
This facility is reviewed to be the most efficient authoritative device of the modern era by Michel Foucault, as it is only run by a small number of personnel to monitor and control a crowd. We are living in a society whereby the eyes of the Internet, various digital devices and densely placed CCTVs are recording our every move. Through the eyes of these devices are those with the powers watch over us, and when we acknowledge this fact, we are trapped in the prison of self-censorship. We become the inmates of the panopticon.
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Design: Jaemin Lee and Heesun Kim
- Year: March 2016
