In George Orwell's1984 Big Brother was a dark and ominous force, but Italian designer Eleonora Trevisanutto's new line of security cameras for manufacturer Video Systems shows just how cute and cuddly an all-encompassing surveillance state can be.

Instead of anonymous grey boxes, Trevisanutto has created a menagerie of animals to house the delicate optics. An owl, squirrel, and other tree-dwelling creatures are joined by a cricket and chameleon to round out a cheerful set of cameras that facilitate security while eliciting smiles.

>Is making a camera in the shape of a friendly animal a subtle form of propaganda?

Visually, the designs evoke Charley Harper's mid-century animal prints and the industrial craftsmanship of Alessi home goods. Made from anodized, sand cast aluminum, each animal is mounted out of reach on a rod intended to look like a tree branch. While pleasant to the eye, they're durable and distant enough to prevent tampering.

Smart Design Details

Clever design flourishes, like using an exposed screw to suggest a gimlet eye, give the pieces a sense of wit while a smoked plastic panel exposes the camera's lens and keeps the series looking consistent. "My inspiration comes from the world of street art and works which deal with the most diverse social topics, such as pollution, culture and ethics, just to name a few," says Trevisanutto.

Technically, Trevisanutto had to work with the stock camera rigs and power supplies used in Video System's core product line. Even with these limitations, she managed to cleverly rejigger the components for aesthetic effect, allowing the owl to maintain a stately stance while also serving the Chameleon's sly pose.

The collection is sold under the brand name Parsons, named for a species of chameleon, as a reminder of the goal of producing cameras meant to be immersed in their environment. "I think of places such as parks or schools, as well as private gardens, where surveillance becomes part of “family-life,” rendering this item less threatening by decreasing the psychological impact, for example, on children," says Trevisanutto

Trevisanutto's designs evoke Charley Harper's mid-century animal prints and the industrial craftsmanship of Alessi home goods. Eleonora Trevisanutto

New Markets for the Panopticon

These animal cameras started as Trevisanutto's thesis project while studying at the Istituto d'Arte Applicata e Design in Turin, Italy. Alessandro Liani, the CEO of Video Systems, had built a thriving business serving industrial customers, but wanted to bring the technological benefits of his products to the mass market. He approached professor Laura Rolle looking for a design collaborator who could make cameras pleasing consumer products and help shed their intimidating appearance.

Trevisanutto experimented with a broad array of ideas: software that could coordinate cameras in the case of emergencies, environmentally-friendly systems, but a client request for designs that would fit into specific settings led the designer to consider cameras that would appeal to niche markets, especially kids. "The Animals collection was not thought [of] exclusively for zoos or theme parks, but we would like the cameras to become objects for urban furnishing, which can be placed in both public environments and private homes," she says.

These designs would make for over-powered nanny cams, but also provoke important questions about the Nanny State. Should surveillance tools be cute? Is making a camera in the shape of a friendly animal a subtle form of propaganda? Or does making the form ostentatious help remind citizens that they are being watched? A vigorous debate will continue as it relates to privacy and surveillance in an increasingly connected world, but no matter what your political leanings are, it's impossible to argue that these cameras aren't adorable.