Laura Kurgan

FILTER: DATA AND SURVEILLANCE and DESTRUCTIVE FORCES AT WORK

Technological systems such as Google Earth create the illusion of a transparent world, but in fact provide us with no more than superficial information. Laura Kurgan shows that such technologies may also be used in an alternative and meaningful way.

The information Kurgan maps with technology, deals with issues such as politics, crime and migration and money flows. She visualized the large number of prisoners in the US and the money that this generates. By giving us this kind of insight into data, Kurgan reveals the forces which hold the world in their grasp.

Close Up at Distance moves at the intersection of architecture, art and political activism. Using data from Global Positioning and Geographic Information Systems, satellites and programs used by security forces among others, Kurgan shows the aesthetics of information and poses questions. How do we navigate through space? How do we inhabit and define space? What is the difference between reality and representation? At Hacking Habitat a four minute video loop is shown which shows the forced migration systems worldwide.

www.spatialinformationdesignlab.org