CCTV

2015
Inkjet on watercolour paper
90 x 60 centimeters

CCTV footage, particularly when it accompanies a news report, has a low resolution and poorly lit quality that psychologically re-enforces the fact that we are most likely viewing a criminal act, and the unease is heightened by the elevated point of view which reminds us that it's a technology watching us 24 hours a day.

This recreation records a burglar in whiteface and clown wig being pursued by the staff members of a pretty downmarket establishment. The tables are made from laminate, the chairs are cheap tan vynl and the carpet has a pattern that was once popular in beer barn style pubs. The guy in the overalls is most likely the cleaner who has downed his mop and bucket to help the manager wearing the brown pants. These characters are a composite of CCTV videos uploaded to YouTube and were chosen because of their odd juxtapositions which creates an ambiguity about what we are witnessing, much like raw footage unaccompanied by context supplied by reportage and where one might conclude that the guy in the wig could be the victim.

---