Meta-Gallery
Meta-Gallery consists of a viewer wearing a virtual reality headset in the projects’ allocated space in the gallery. The viewer can watch live streams of predetermined spots where CCTV systems are placed throughout the gallery space. Instead of using a metaphor to visualise interactivity within surveillance, Meta-Gallery gives direct access to its audience by making them the watchers. The people being seen or heard in Meta-Gallery are part of the installation itself, becoming a creative collaborator within the system. The viewer will also have a camera above himself which will also be feeding into the virtual environment, where he can watch himself participating in surveillance. The key signifier in Meta-Gallery is the environment in which the viewer enters through the use of the VR headset, a CCTV watch room. This watch room provides autonomy to the viewer by giving him the power to watch over the whole space surrounding the piece. The audience being observed the VR space are much less restricted as to what their actions should be, giving a unique experience to each viewer that wears the headset.
