Print Contemporary Practice
Thomas Murphy
‘Eye See..’ is a series of works, that follows a narrative with themes of humour and a darkness about them, referencing the panopticon (a prison with cells arranged around a central tower, for which prisoners could at all times be observed) and Jan Švankmajer’s ideology of ‘bringing life to everyday objects’. The focus of these works is on the journey of the Eye through a series of rooms and hallways in what seems to be a infinite loop. The disembodied Eye is used to symbolise the human side of surveillance with its constant presence in each room. With its function the disembodied eye is used to reference the function of the panopticon tower. Which is it’s presence is used to maintain order and cause paranoia within the cells. The Eye is transported through various rooms by the different inhabitants within the works box room world. All rooms are similar in terms of layout and design creating a sense of a loop occurring within this world.