To make a map is to give order to the world, to give it a "reasonable character that it does not necessarily possess". The maps describe more than the biophysical constitution of the territory, revealing rather an obsession with accuracy and measurement, opening a biography of observation, control and knowledge.
This installation presents visualizations and maps of conflicting landscapes in southern Afghanistan during the 2001-2014 war. It is the result of a research project that analyzed the strategic importance of the most conflictual landscapes in the region using geospatial analysis in conversations and training with archaeologists.
This installation does not expose the truth value, but rather the particular nature of remote sensing data that is assembled by an analyst. Aesthetics and objective knowledge are intertwined through a purely optical rendering, which makes it both subjective and qualitative as well as convincing, revealing the politics and aesthetics of remote sensing. It exposes Saadia Mirza's map of Afghanistan from Afghanistan on the map.
The installation presents the collaboration with the artist, composer and performer Antoni Rayzhekov, in the form of a sonification of the image data, maps and topography of the project. The sound environment is an extension of his separate project Organic Oscillators.
Saadia Mirza (Canada/Pakistan) is a recipient of the Visual Arts Committees of the Cité internationale des arts.