Like being followed around all day? There's an app for that
Nope, this isn't creepy at all.
If you like the feeling of being watched while you go about your daily routine, there's an NYC-based artist who will coordinate that for you. With the appropriately-named Follower project, you can apply to have someone keep tabs on your for an entire day. Once you're selected, you get access to an iPhone app that lets you know when the watching starts and stops. The software also uses your phone's GPS to track you during that time.
During the predetermined day, someone will ogle your every move "following, observing, appreciating each moment, without interfering." At the end of the day, the app will let you know when you're no longer being watched by sending a photo taken during the ordeal. In fact, that's the only contact you have with the person who's keeping an eye on you. Thankfully Unfortunately, Follower is only available in New York City.
Follower is the work of artist and NYU faculty member Lauren McCarthy, who is the only person doing any following right now. The "service" is actually a performance project to observe response to attention and surveillance, but anyone can apply to be either followed or to be a follower. "There is something strangely intimate about the whole thing for me," McCarthy explains. "By the end of the day, I feel as though I know them, and we have had a prolonged experience together."
