Summary

In “Building the Empire of The Gaze: The Modern Movement and the Surveillance Society,” by Peter Jones, it goes in depth to how there was a relation between modern architecture and the use of surveillance in society. He argues that the way modernist architects designed, there was consistent use of visual order that asserted a type of control of the public, especially in urban settings. There were large plain public spaces and minimal ornamental use on architecture. This created easy visibility throughout. This minimalistic approach to architecture and the built environment has led to a feeling of control. There was technology development that also introduced video cameras and surveillance systems. The public have increasingly become more “watched” since. 

Peter Jones explains that because corporations and the government are getting more surveillant in their use of technology, that architects and designers and planners should not use architecture as a tool to control. The experience of the individual through contemporary society is already witnessing cameras recording them on every block and every stop light. This can create a very anxious and unsettling environment. He argues that as designers and architects we might as well design to create a more comfortable atmosphere, one which promotes freedom and creates distance from the modernist surveillant designs.

Built in Surveillance System @ Farmers Market Pavilion

I focused on the Farmers Market Pavilion, and observed its surveillance throughout the day. There are garage doors that are on every wall of the pavilion that open to the outside. And you can very easily see most of the inside when you are outside and most of outside when you are inside. I was curious because this area, especially on farmers market days, is busy with people buying farm goods, but there are also a lot of homeless people hanging around. I wondered if the lack of control and surveillance in this architecture would affect the actions and feelings of the people experiencing this space. But I noticed because of the open floor plan and connection to the outside, there was maximum visibility. And it is a public space that is only open on certain days, and on those days there’s always a crowd of people. This space almost creates its own kind of surveillance, and that only of your fellow farmers market goers. There doesn’t need to be cameras on every inside and outside of the building because there is always going to be someone else who will be able to see you in this space. I thought this was a clever way to design a space that doesn’t have built-in surveillance but also is open enough to allow the user to feel safe, because they will never be alone.