Ontology is the half of metaphysics that studies the origins, history and essence of being. Panopticon comes from Greek...pan, meaning ‘all’ plus optikon or ‘optic’, meaning vision or seeing; combined means "all seeing". The word from the mid 18th century onward refers to a type of telescope. The term was used by prison reformer Jeremy Bentham in 1790 for his design of a circular institutional building, namely a prison or insane asylum. This design allows for total surveillance of prisoners or patients. In Discipline and Punish (1975) Michel Foucault describes the panopticon as an apparatus of power by virtue of the field of visibility it creates. 

The Ontological Panopticon series comprises iPhone video “fly-overs” of a hardcopy Rand McNally road atlas of the United States. Manipulated in Photoshop (yes, Photoshop) they present as psychological or emotional impressions of each location the maps represent and stand as a metaphor for my state of being (and perhaps contemporary society too) at the time each video was created.

Flash Warning: These videos contain flashing imagery that may be triggering for some people.