Close Up at a Distance - Mapping, Technology, and Politics

Více o knize

The maps in this book are created using satellites, pixels from outer space, and statistics, capturing intense conflict situations and transforming our perception of space. Built with Global Positioning Systems (GPS), remote sensing satellites, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), these digital tools serve various military and governmental purposes, including reconnaissance and national security. Laura Kurgan’s analysis does not shy away from the political complexities of these technologies; instead, it seeks to illuminate them. Positioned at the crossroads of art, architecture, activism, and geography, her work reveals the implicit biases in these new perspectives and the methods of information recording they entail. Kurgan's presentation reclaims and repurposes these maps for diverse uses—documentary, memorial, preservation, interpretation, political, or aesthetic. Since 1991, GPS has been accessible to both civilians and the military, and the democratization of data began with the World Wide Web in 1992, followed by Google Earth in 2005, which provided global views. This technological evolution has radically changed how we navigate and define our spatial environment. The maps chart the traces of both physical and virtual interactions, illustrating this significant shift.