fortunecookie

2025/2026

“fortunecookie“ deals with the omnipresent collection of data in digital and physical spaces and makes the normally invisible surveillance physically and emotionally tangible.

QR codes function as black boxes in public spaces, opaque and ubiquitous. More than 100 web providers and accessible tools enable anyone to generate QR codes. However, private and unknown hosts can illegally store personal data. Locations, phone numbers, contacts, images, browser histories, etc.

Visitors to the installation scan a QR code, land on a website, and click *ENTER*. This seemingly harmless act triggers a projector installation with real-time face tracking: their face appears extremely enlarged on the projection, while legaly collected device data (browser, platform) appears as text overlay. The collected user data is displayed for 12 seconds before being deleted.

The installation turns the promise of technology on its head: you scan the code, but the code also scans you. What began as a voluntary interaction becomes a confrontation with structural surveillance. It demonstrates how trivial and accessible data theft is and appeals to critical awareness.