How do artists use fabric to critique biometric surveillance?

In an era of pervasive biometric surveillance, artists are turning to fabric as a medium to challenge and critique the intrusion of technology into personal privacy. Through textile installations, wearable art, and interactive pieces, they explore themes of identity, control, and resistance. Fabric, with its tactile and mutable qualities, becomes a powerful metaphor for the fluidity of human identity in contrast to the rigid categorizations imposed by surveillance systems.

Some artists embed biometric data patterns into woven or printed fabrics, making the invisible mechanisms of surveillance visible. Others create garments that disrupt facial recognition software, using reflective materials or disruptive patterns. Collaborative projects often invite participants to contribute personal fabrics, weaving collective narratives that resist data commodification.

These works not only question the ethics of biometric tracking but also reclaim the human body as a site of agency rather than compliance. By merging craft traditions with digital-age concerns, fabric artists are stitching together a bold critique of surveillance capitalism.