Everyone knows that watching too much TV isn’t exactly good for you. But in a world fixated on technological advancement, it seems impossible not to be looking at a screen for at least part of the day.
Photographer Donna Stevens, who hails from Australia but is currently based in New York, explores the effects of this obsession in her series called Idiot Box.
Stevens photographed young children as they sat in dark rooms watching television, capturing their slack, glazed-over expressions. She describes it as an exploration of the darker side of our relationship with technology.
Stevens explains that the series is an “exploration into the co-dependent relationship we all share with technology and the media.”
She continues by begging a few important questions: “Should we exhibit more caution about the role of technology in our children’s lives? Is our techno-paranoia warranted? No matter what gadgetry we may possess, do our problems remain human?”
The answers to these questions are likely as complex as the technology itself. Stevens’ work confronts various facets of contemporary human existence with unflinching portraits that help us see beyond the status quo.
You can see more of her work on her website.
