The Third Eye

This project delves in the domain of gender and the associated power equations. One of the manifestations of the power-play lies in the differences between the observer and the observed, the active and the passive. Many individuals who identify as women and/or LGBTQ+ have felt their bodies get scrutinized by an unwanted/intrusive gaze. 

Taking inspiration from Laura Mulvey’s conception of the cinematic ‘male gaze’, this project has materialized in the form of a gaze machine – a pair of disembodied eyes (along with the third eye of the camera) that gazes back at someone looking at them. The intention is to use humor and provocation to disrupt the power dynamic of the gendered gaze.

This gaze machine is currently embedded in a handbag and can be extended to other accessories like the cap, the belt or the bag pack. Each of them will have a different connotation in action. Further work would involve taking the gaze machine to different contexts– from the overt to the covert and from being gender-centric to being surveillance-centric.