the suspect backpack

blogged about

2008-09-04T00:44:00.004+10:00

post-singapore...

see http://www.datenform.de/blog/2008/08/suspect-backpack.html

isea 2008

2008-08-13T09:29:00.003+10:00

presented the suspect backpack project at the 2008 International Symposium of Electronic Art in Singapore on a panel with other wearable projects such as Doug Easterly and Matt Kenyon from SWAMP

http://moondial.typepad.com/fashionabletechnology/2008/07/isea2008.html

suspicious warning

2008-07-31T17:11:00.001+10:00

isea

2008-04-21T05:48:00.001+10:00

I'll be presenting an artist talk at the International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA) in Singapore in late July 2008.

suspect

2008-03-11T10:41:00.001+11:00

exploding

2008-02-16T04:42:00.006+11:00

julien maire's exploding camera work - was on exhibition in 2007, at ars electronica and then again at the re:place conference in berlin

exploding camera comments on the murder of taliban opposer Massoud, who was killed by two al quaida suicide bombers posing as journalists

while the parts are all disassembled here, instead of working as a capturing device, the camera has been hacked into a projection device - project images of explosions (by means of his expanded cinema technique)

collision course

2007-09-23T08:45:00.001+10:00

yet another innocent....
MIT student arrested for entering Boston airport with "fake bomb"

where airport security can't tell the difference between a circuit board - found in all electronic gadgets - and a bomb.

wearable tech = fake bomb? i don't think so...

meeting...

2007-09-01T02:42:00.000+10:00

last monday evening - while notting hill carnival was wrapping up - i met with david mery in soho.

after over year in small snippets of discussion over email, i felt humbled to meet the man, on who much of this project has been based.

hopefully the first meeting over coffee and beer is not the last, and that next time he gets to "try out" the project (which will hopefully not develop any anxieties...)

fearmonger

2007-08-15T02:20:00.000+10:00

assessing

2007-08-14T01:19:00.000+10:00

"The Suspect Backpack makes a strong creative contribution in terms of locative media, sound art, and activist art... The really major creative contribution is the psychological and emotional space that is opened by placing the work on the boundary of private listening and public performance. The audience navigation of this boundary generates the experience of empathy that the artist has intended, and the possibility to use emotion to influence future thinking and behaviour is the holy grail of activist art."

Professor Stephen Barrass, University of Canberra

referencing

2007-07-12T02:07:00.000+10:00

References

Atak, T. (2006). "Cyborg dancing." RealTime Arts Retrieved 05 October 2006, from http://www.realtimearts.net/inbetweentime/index.html.
Australian War Memorial. (2003). " Black canvas back pack : RAN Boarding Party." Retrieved 2nd April, 2006, from http://cas.awm.gov.au/TST2/cst.acct_master?surl=2012092619ZZETSNSTKGFJ78199&stype=3&simplesearch=&v_umo=&v_product_id=&screen_name=&screen_parms=&screen_type=RIGHT&bvers=5&bplatform=Netscape&bos=MacPPC.
Bogart, L. (1995). Commercial Culture: The Media System and the Public Interest. New York, Oxford University Press.
BoingBoing. (2004). "Case against Steve Kurtz/Critical Art Ensemble continues." Retrieved 3 March 2007, from http://www.boingboing.net/2006/01/15/case_against_steve_k.html.
Chan, J. (2006). Surveillance and the Constitution of ‘Suspicious Packages. Sydney, University of New South Wales.
Co, E. (2004). Puddlejumper. Los Angeles.
Collet, T. and T. Najem (2005). Word Choices in Post-9/11 Speeches and the Identity. Ottawa, Canadian Political Science Association: 7.
Daniel, E. V. (1994). The individual in terror. Embodiment and experience : the existential ground of culture and self. T. J. Csordas. New York, Cambridge University Press: 54.
Davies, A. (2005). Dislocation. Melbourne, Experimenta.
Davies, C. (1998). Immersence.
Debatty, R. (2005). "Counter-Surveillance Headdress." Retrieved 1 May, 2006, from http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/003872.html.
Fox News. (2006). "Chaos and Confusion at NORAD on Newly Released 9/11 Tapes." Retrieved 04 October, 2006, from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,207062,00.html.
Ga, Z. (2006). The Shipment from China. San Jose.
Gonsalves, T. "Medulla Intimata." Retrieved 18 November, 2006, from http://www.tinagonsalves.com/medulla.html.
Gonsalves, T. (2005). "Mobile Journeys." from http://dlux.org.au/mobilejourneys/tinagonsalves.html.
Graham, B. (1996). Playing with Yourself: Pleasure and Interactive Art. Fractal Dreams.
Hainge, G. D. (2006). Listening to Mediation: Digital Noise in a Post-High-Fidelity Age Mediations, Australasian Computer Music Conference 2006. Adelaide.
Hiller, S. (2000). "Witness." Retrieved 22 February, 2006, from http://www.susanhiller.org/Info/artworks/artworks-Witness.html.
Hoffman, B. (2006). Inside Terrorism. New York, New York, Columbia University Press.
International Association of Chiefs of Police (2005). Suicide (Homicide) Bombers. Training Key 58. IACP, IACP.
Kellner, D. (2002). "September 11, the Media, and War Fever." Television and New Media.
Kerne, A., J. Stenner, et al. (2006). Playas: Homeland Mirage.
Khut, G. P. and L. Muller. (2005). "Cardiomorphologies." Retrieved 12 July 2006, 2006, from http://www.georgekhut.com/cardiomorphologies/.
Lancel, K. and H. Maat (2004). Stalk Show.
Langley, S. (2006). The Suspect Backpack. Canberra.
Langley, S. (2007). Mobile Patters. Canberra.
Lyon, M. L. and J. M. Barbalet (1994). Society’s body: emotion and the "somatization" of social theory. Embodiment and experience : the existential ground of culture and self. T. J. Csordas. New York, Cambridge University Press: 54.
Mann, S. (2003). Telematic Tubs Against Terror.
Mann, S. (2004). "Telematic Tubs against Terror: Bathing in the Immersive Interactive Media of the Post-Cyborg Age." Leonardo 37(5): 372-373.
Manovich, L. (2005) "Understanding Meta-Media." 1000 of Theory Volume: 20. Retrieved September 20, 2006, from http://www.ctheory.net/articles.aspx?id=493.
Mery, D. (2005). "Techie and terrorist behavioural profiles are the same." Retrieved October 24, 2006, from http://gizmonaut.net/bits/profiling.html.
Ming, H. J. (2006). Altitude Zero. San Jose.
Moriwaki, K. (2002). Inside/Outside.
Mott, I., J. Sosnin, et al. (1997). Sound Mapping. Melbourne.
Mueller, L. (2006). Engaging with Experience. Engage, Interaction, Art and Audience Experience. E. Edmonds, L. Mueller and D. Turnbull. Sydney, Creativity and Cognition, University of Sydney: xvii.
Plawiuk, E. W. (1998). "Guernica (1937): Pablo Picasso's Spanish Civil War." Retrieved 3 March, 2007, from http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/9820/guernica.htm.
Pugliese, J. (2003). "The Locus of the Non: the racial fault-line of "of Middle-Eastern appearance"." Borderlands Journal 2(3).
reBrain. (2002). "_backpack (Prototype 2.2)." Retrieved 9 February, 2007, from http://www.arch.kth.se/eurb/rebrain/.
Reeders, N. and D. McLeod (2005). The Shy Picture. Melbourne, Experimenta.
Rendell, R. (2006). End in Tears, eBooks.com: the digital book store.
Ríos, J. (2004). "The Painting, Guernica." Retrieved 4 March, 2007, from http://www.guernicamag.com/features/6/the_painting_guernica/.
Robertson, D. (2005). "New anti-terrorism ads hit the airwaves." Retrieved 15 February, 2007, from http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2005/s1414590.htm.
Rubidge, S. (2006). Sensuous Geographies and Other Installations: Interfacing the Body and Technology. Performance and technology : practices of virtual embodiment and interactivity. S. Broadhurst and J. Machon. New York, Palgrave Macmillan.
Rucker, U. (2003). Silver or Lead. What a Woman Must Do, !K7.
Rucker, U. (2006). Ma'at Mama. Rant (Hot In Here), !K7.
Rundell, J. (2004). "Strangers, Citizens and Outsiders: Otherness, Multiculturalism and the Cosmopolitan Imaginary in Mobile Societies." Thesis Eleven 78(1): 85-101.
Saul, S. (2006). Experimenta under the radar : an exhibition of Australian media art. Melbourne, Experimenta Media Arts Inc.
Sed, G. (2005). Counter-Surveillance Headdress.
Shackman, M. (2005). Re-enactment: David Mery. London.
Small, J. (1982). Mothers, Daughters, Wives.
Stelarc (1998). Exoskeleton. Melbourne.
Stenner, J. (2006). Playas: Homeland Mirage. San Jose.
Stuckey, H. (2005). "state of play: games with an agenda." Retrieved 05 January, 2007.
The Somner and WFB Consulting Counter-Terrorism. (2002). "Terrorism Articles."
Transmute Collective (2003). Intimate Transactions. Brisbane.
We Make Money Not Art. (2006). "Data Bodies." Retrieved 05 January, 2007, from http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/cat_isea2006.php.
We Make Money Not Art. (2006). "Trainers for Border Crossers." Retrieved 04 April, 2006, from http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/008070.php.
Wikipedia. (2007). "Blogosphere." Retrieved 3 March, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogosphere.
Wikipedia. (2007). "Culture Jamming." Retrieved 26 February, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_jamming.
Wikipedia. (2007). "Hijab." Retrieved 3 March, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hijab.
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Zellen, J. (2004). "Disembodied Voices." Retrieved 16 December, 2006, from http://jodyzellen.com/dvx_index.html.

This still constitutes a draft of the references used in the thesis, as I have a more comprehensive list (an re-edit of the document) in progress

review

2007-06-27T07:23:00.000+10:00

there's a short review of this project by sean healy at: http://www.skynoise.net/2007/06/15/dorkbot-melbourne/

patchie

2007-05-04T19:23:00.000+10:00

gut response

2007-03-30T14:38:00.000+10:00

"It makes you act in an entirely different way... [and] I found it extremely disconcerting."

"It made me curious in my thoughts and really very anxious in my gut. So I felt quite anxious/nervous but it made no sense to feel like that."

"It's a unique experience yet at the same time its a very familiar experience. It really captures one's imagination."

Elliot Cooper (PhD Candidate, University of Canberra), 2007

built for all weather

2007-03-20T18:44:00.000+11:00

(just add umbrella)

the suspect backpack heads off on a journey in the rain

solaar powa

2007-03-14T15:00:00.000+11:00

solar powered backpacks: http://www.voltaicsystems.com/

(although it takes at least 4 hours to charge a mobile phone, wonder what it would take for a laptop...)

scanning philadelphia's homeland security

2007-03-02T15:08:00.002+11:00

"Many people today are accustomed to Immigration and Customs at airports but nothing had prepared me for the surreal encounter on entering Philadelphia airport. Standard questions as 'what are you doing in the USA? How long will you stay here? Where are you staying?' were greeted with my standard answers. Nothing could have prepared me for the additional questions from Customs though - with suitcase in hand I handed over my form.

'What would I find in your suitcase if I were to look inside?'
the security guard asked.
'What would I find if I were to search your backpack?'

Then looking me up and down, head to toe, he calmly asked
'So...what are you wearing?'

I was stunned. After a long pause all I could do was sleepily point to myself and mutter '...er...clothes.'. He looked at me again, smiled coolly, and repeated, 'yes but what are wearing?' pointing at my Vexed Generation outfit. He then told me to move on, leaving me thoroughly bewildered. Are there now fashion restrictions on entering the USA?" (Scanner March 2007)

speakers - script

2007-03-02T15:08:00.001+11:00

Suspicious behaviour will not be tolerated. We have been advised that in the current political climate it has been necessary for governments to implement experimental surveillance technologies.

Individuals who are found loitering, particularly those of middle-eastern appearance, or those who happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, have very few remaining rights. states a source, who cannot be identified.

Wearing dark clothing or carrying a heavy, bulky bag or anything that matches these descriptions triggers a cacophony of alarms. Citizens who own a laptop computer, mobile devices such as digital cameras or music players and who are determined to carry them around in a

Backpack, are likely to be detained for questioning or searched on the spot. It is impossible to tell whether you will be instructed to move along or if additional probing technologies will be called upon. If this is the case, it is highly probable that such people will be

arrested in no time at all.
While the masses, navigate their way through chaotic and over-populated city streets, after a stressful day in the office, thoughts such as these could be the last things on their mind.

Crowded transport systems and other popular metropolitan destinations, venues such as open-air shopping malls, markets and frequently touristed

public spaces are considered to be probable target zones. Authorities have issued warnings and are stationed in various inner-city centres in specific

locations where this may occur. Disaster response units are on high alert, ready to react at the slightest sign of danger. Urban inhabitants should undertake appropriate cautionary measures.

[The "news headline" is indicated in bold...]

headphones - script

2007-03-02T15:07:00.000+11:00

Breathe. Take a step forward, and another one. How many times have you tried? You have to do it this time.

It’s OK to take it slowly. Not everyone is this afraid of public spaces. The other people, aren’t that’s for sure. That’s what you take anxiety pills for.

They’re going about their own business and are too concerned with their things, and are definitely busy with their stuff. They are really, really you hear me… really

not aware of you, in-fact no-one is even likely to glance your way and they’re certainly not able to draw their attention away from their portable media players they can’t stop fidgeting with or

watching. They’re not concerned about anything else apart from themselves, especially such little things like other city inhabitants such as

you, where you’re going, or what you’re doing. So what are worried about? The world can’t be this hard.

Just get on with it. It’s not that difficult to do, and it’ll make things better. You’ll see.

Breathe. Remember to breathe. Deep breaths. One more for good luck.

[The "headline" is indicated in bold...]

wedgie

2007-02-26T22:52:00.000+11:00

a cardboard wedge (constructed by dave the book binder) covered in felt...

a simple approach to keeping a 12inch g4 laptop running with the screen (mostly) closed. another option is to modify the kernel (there are some apps available) to stop the laptop going into sleep mode when the screen is shut.

as these laptops cool through the keyboard, running it with the screen shut potentially damages the screen, and probably overheats the laptop as well. so for this reason (as the laptop is running in a backpack - and it does heat up a little in there, it can still cool to a certain degree) plus modifying the kernel might result in complete re-installation of the os - something i try to avoid if possible.

exegesis title (draft)

2007-02-20T17:18:00.000+11:00

Terrartism and Interplay: recontextualising the outsider in post-9/11 society

terrartism

2007-02-20T12:01:00.000+11:00

Terrartism is a portmanteau word combining "artist" and "terrorism". It is used to describe a sub-genre of Culture Jamming and Artivist practices, particularly artworks addressing notions of fear, terrorism and 'otherness' in post-9/11 society. Works include new media art projects by artists such as Jonah Brucker-Cohen and the FutureFarmers. Other examples can be found at We Make Money Not Art.

stack

2007-02-18T00:55:00.000+11:00

stack of books from the National Library which i'm using for my exegesis...

terrartist

2006-12-04T21:43:00.000+11:00

unsoundly unaustralian

2006-11-15T14:15:00.000+11:00

the von crapp family's backpack sound installations on the loco-motivus train journey...

proto type

2006-10-19T11:24:00.000+10:00

scrg seminar

2006-10-03T12:41:00.000+10:00

presented my suspect backpack project at a Sonic Communications Research Group seminar last week.

signal analog

2006-09-25T14:33:00.000+10:00

there is some info here about getting data from the Maxbotix sonar sensors that i'm using - have chosen to go with the analog signal - see the FAQ: http://www.maxbotix.com/MaxSonar-EZ1__FAQ.php

in order of shortcuts

2006-09-25T14:30:00.000+10:00

the list of shortcuts (to scripts, apps or patches) - in the order that they need to be run. the set-up is starting to become complex...

sydney suspicion

2006-09-25T13:22:00.001+10:00

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/bomb-squad-find-old-shoes-in-cbd-alert/2006/09/14/1157827060987.html

audio aggregation

2006-09-25T13:22:00.000+10:00

setting up an aggregate audio device to run multichannel outputs and routing audio to both headphones and external speakers.

interfacing java

2006-09-25T13:21:00.000+10:00

configuring the microcontroller and blocking unused channels via a java app written by Angelo.

daughter of...

2006-09-25T13:20:00.001+10:00

daughterboard for powering and converting signal from the Maxbotix sonar sensors thru the MiniCV microcontroller.

sleepless

2006-09-25T13:19:00.000+10:00

two software options for keeping a powerbook g4 running while the lid is shut...

InsomniaX

SleepLess

for many reasons not recommended (including the fact that the cooling system is designed to cool through the keyboard), but nevertheless, some ppl still require

speaking - externally

2006-09-25T13:16:00.000+10:00

i have selected a pair of speakers for the external audio: http://www.everythingusb.com/logitech_v20_laptop_speakers.html

electronic bits

2006-09-24T20:35:00.000+10:00

bits and pieces of the gear that i'm using for this suspect backpack project...

up-grade (my world)

2006-09-24T19:32:00.000+10:00

have upgraded my mac powerbook laptop to run OS X 10.4.7 - finally! Up until now I've been running 10.2.8 - which has been really stable as i've been doing a lot of live a/v performance work over the last year and a half.

But I needed to upgrade so i can utilise the aggregate audio facility that becomes available with Tiger.

railing activity

2006-09-07T02:53:00.000+10:00

sensory sonar

2006-08-02T02:27:00.000+10:00

the MaxSonar EZ1 sonar sensor from MaxBotix (which i'll be using to provide me with proximity information)

controlla

2006-08-01T09:15:00.000+10:00

one of Angelo Fraietta's microcontrollers - the miniCV controller - that I'm using to convert the sensor signal into data

sensitive sensing

2006-07-19T14:23:00.000+10:00

the online version of a book on physical computing which is really useful for artists/creators: http://itp.nyu.edu/~dbo3/physical/physical.html ...of course, it's from ITP @ NYU.

What i'd really love to use is - the "people detector", which is basically an "Electric Field Proximity Sensor": http://www.bik.com/.

There's also a Wikipedia entry on sensors: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensor

see-thru packs

2006-07-19T05:32:00.000+10:00

A project that was recently pointed out to me - http://www.artspacenh.org/backpack/

This project looks was a collaborative community-based project where a number of clear backpacks were handed out and contributors could decorate, fill, design them.

Natalie Jeremijenko's words here relate to the issues that i'm drawn to, in general, and definitely with my own backpack project.

discussing intent

2006-07-19T04:57:00.000+10:00

While at the Time_Place_Space 5 workshop, I met with Darrell Buckley from the Elision Ensemble to discuss this suspect backpack project.

Through this discussion a number of points arose, which were triggered from Scanner and Darrell's presentation of the provocations: "the labrynth" and "the vanishing point". One of the works used to illustrate the notion of the vanishing point was Alvin Lucier's "I am sitting in a room" (1970) a tape piece where Alvin records his own voice and the acoustics of the room over and over until his voice is obscured.

I was originally considering recording a range of different audio recordings about people's different backpack/luggage stories, particularly those related to any kind of security issue. However through this discussion, i've realised that having all of these voices is potentially another project in itself (perhaps a radio work?) and that i should focus on and drill down on the content of this work. I'm also not interested in having a narrative structure to the sound work, more of an abstract sonic environment that the user can explore.

I'd like to use a short recording (two sentences, ideally) of just one voice. The voice of whom is still TBA, but I feel that it is necessary for this voice to represent the concept of the work as a whole. I may need to enlist the help of Scanner to realise this... which I did mention to him while he was in Australia, but this too needs to be confirmed...

In navigating the sound environment, the notions of obscuring, and bringing into focus the sonic qualities of the voice. Relating back to the concept of the work itself, people are often judged by their appearance alone. As part of the Time_Place_Space workshop, Shigeaki proposed a work that required us to carry out an intervention into Brisbane society - based around unbearable (and bearable) stereotypes. Our group took this to mean cultural stereotypes. During the intervention - where we asked people on the street to guess our nationality - this was often taken to mean whether we were Australian. In trying to make these guesses, the people we interviewed often asked to hear our voice (our accent) to help them determine whether we were "Australian" or from elsewhere.

This for me highlighted something in relation to the forming of stereotypes. They are often formed based on a visual, however a great deal of the telltale information is transmitted sonically (via our accent). When a "security" issue arises - our modes of communication are clamped down upon, and the first mode of communication that (the majority) would use without thinking would be the voice. So it is this obscuring and bringing into focus a message that I feel should be the content for the work. However i do not want this to be a literal approach as if in a goal-driven game environment.

How this message is navigated I am still working through, particuarly in its relation to proximity.

colouring

2006-05-26T01:19:00.000+10:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drp/35358109/

system diagram

2006-05-21T21:12:00.000+10:00

the stranger and outsider

2006-05-21T21:10:00.000+10:00

“… assumed interchangeability between the stranger and the outsider… and that in contemporary modern and post-traditional societies these categories have become distinct.”

Rundell, J., “Strangers, Citizens and Outsiders: Otherness, Multiculturalism and the Cosmopolitan Imaginary in Mobile Societies”, Thesis Eleven, Sage Publications, London, 2004

imag-e(n)-ing

2006-05-21T21:09:00.000+10:00

Frank Hurley: Man with backpack looking across valley with mountains in background ca. 1938-1947 -
http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an23564690

Soldier wearing wireless communication backpack... during World War II - http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/argus/0/0/7/doc/an007456.shtml

Issued to Royal Australian Navy Boarding Parties... during the Iraq War - Australian War Memorial - Black canvas back pack : RAN Boarding Party - REL31408.010

does a... (true or false)

2006-05-21T21:06:00.000+10:00

“Does a briefcase, duffle bag, or backpack seem extra heavy or have protrusions or visible wires? When the individual sits down, is he or she overly protective of this item or preoccupied with it?”

International Association of Chiefs of Police training guide on profiling suicide bombers PDF document: http://www.theiacp.org/pubinfo/IACP581SuicideBombersPart1.pdf

transmit: intimate

2006-05-21T21:01:00.000+10:00

Intimate Transactions by the Transmute Collective is currently on in Sydney, Australia at Artspace and The Performance Space

A previous RealTime article can be found at: http://www.realtimearts.net/rt59/armstrong.html

suitcasey sound

2006-05-21T20:52:00.000+10:00

Sound Mapping: Iain Mott, Jim Sosnin, Marc Raszewski

research question (final)

2006-05-21T20:51:00.000+10:00

Navigating through the packed metropolis, a solitary figure wearing a backpack weaves through the crowd. Out the corners of eyes they watch; I retreat from their gaze.

In the context of global terrorism, mainstream media conveys notions of the individual as a threatening outsider. Meanwhile, proliferation of portable technologies supports an ideal of the modern mobile citizen. New Media artworks, from the fields of wearables and interactive installations, provide immersive environments for intimate first-person experiences. How do media-embodiments and enhanced spaces alter perception? Can they aid in developing a personalised awareness of the outsider’s position in the current socio-political climate?

research question (draft 2.1)

2006-05-10T17:33:00.000+10:00

Navigating through the packed metropolis, a solitary figure wearing a backpack weaves through the crowd. Out the corners of eyes they watch, as I retreat from their gazes.

In the context of global terrorism, mainstream media conveys notions of the individual as a threatening outsider. Meanwhile, the proliferation of portable technologies supports an ideal of the modern mobile citizen. New Media artworks from the fields of wearables and interactive installations provide immersive environments for intimate first-person experiences. How do media-embodiments and enhanced spaces alter perception? Can they aid in developing a personalised awareness of the outsider’s position in the current socio-political climate?

research question (draft 2)

2006-05-03T18:01:00.000+10:00

Navigating through the packed metropolis, a solitary figure wearing a backpack weaves through the crowd. Out of the corners of eyes they watch, as I retreat from their gazes. In the context of global terrorism, mainstream media conveys notions of the individual as a threatening outsider. Concurrently, the proliferation of portable technologies supports an ideal of the modern mobile citizen. New media artworks from the fields of wearables and interactive installations provide immersive environments for intimate first-person experiences. How do these media-embodiments and enhanced spaces alter perception? Can they aid in developing a personalised awareness of the outsider’s position in the current socio-political climate?

research question (draft)

2006-05-02T02:00:00.000+10:00

Navigating through the packed metropolis, a solitary backpack-laden figure weaves through the crowd. Out the corners of eyes, they watch, as I retreat from their gazes. In the context of the global terrorism, frequenting mainstream media are notions of the individual as a threatening outsider. Concurrently, the proliferation of portable technologies drives an ideal of the modern citizen. New media artworks – from the emerging field of wearables – and interactive installations provide immersive environments for intimate first-person experiences. How do media-embodiments and enhanced spaces alter perceptions and aid in developing an awareness of the outsider’s position within the current socio-political climate?

indymedia interview (uk)

2006-04-26T08:37:00.000+10:00

Following the London Underground bombings in July 2005 and only a week after Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead, David Mery was arrested under UK terrorism laws. His arrest was based on his physical profile (including wearing a coat in summer and carrying a bulky backpack) and behaviour in the station (looking at his mobile phone screen and retrieving an article from his pocket which he began to read).

To hear an interview - by UK IndyMedia - with David:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2005/09/324347.html

grey zone

2006-04-26T08:05:00.000+10:00

Steve Kurtz, one of the founding members of the Critical Art Ensemble spoke recently at the New Constellations conference at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney. He was arrested in 2004 - after he called police when his wife died suddenly from a heart attack - and investigated for bioterrorism.

More information can be found at:
http://www.boingboing.net/2006/01/15/case_against_steve_k.html
http://www.caedefensefund.org/

In the presentation he discussed a selection of Critical Art ensemble projects and a range of issues including contemporary artist's responsibilities in modern society.

This really highlights the necessity for artists to be aware of the law. It is becoming increasingly obvious that 'the line' (dividing legal and illegal) is no longer an identifiable 'thin black line' but more of a 'grey zone'. The impact of changing legislations (such as the newly instated Australian sedition laws) mean that artists need to be aware of the laws in relation to their arts practice (if their artwork questions social or political issues).

profiling who?

2006-04-26T07:49:00.000+10:00

it becomes immediately apparent to me that profiling of this kind only identifies an individual who can "do something" with technology. it doesn't necessarily identify whether someone will use their technologist/telecommunication skills for good or for bad.

see some information on profiling: http://gizmonaut.net/bits/profiling.html

misguiding perception (real life)

2006-03-28T15:07:00.000+11:00

this is exactly the type of everyday real life situations that the suspect backpack project hopes to address, see:
http://gizmonaut.net/bits/suspect.html

If i'm short, slightly dark-skinned and wearing a backpack...

...do i get considered as the "other"? As someone to be suspicious of?

just because i meet all the right criteria: slightly darker-skinned [tick], in a hurry [tick], mobile phone [tick], jacket [tick], backpack [tick]
Doesn't this describe a significant proportion of the people in the world?

original inspiration

2006-03-06T09:19:00.000+11:00

while this image turned out to be a "fake" - not posted by the London Underground - it raised the awareness of what it means to be "foreign" post the London Underground bombings, and the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes.

and the news today...

2006-02-24T09:58:00.000+11:00

the news today - is essentially 'live by Australian law or get out' http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=88387

it's not like they're wearing the counter surveillance headdress

where's the so-called celebration of multicultralism, tolerance and co-existance that Australia used to be so proud of?

starting point

2006-02-20T08:44:00.000+11:00

"... i was convinced i was walking behind you coming out of the tube station this morning - someone who looked just like you and even had that heavy backpack you always carry."

Nicole Leuning, 21st October 2005