Take A Left at the Carlyle Group

If you feel lost just thinking about global culture, Bureau d'Etudes may have some navigational tools for you. An art collective based in France, BDE creates graphical maps of relationships of power, like those existing between financial institutions, nation states and military operations. The often complex flow charts, featuring jumbles of pictographs, texts, and connecting circuitry, offer visual representations of abstractions such as the 'military industrial complex' and 'world government.' Critic Brian Holmes' essay, 'Cartography of Excess,' available on the Bureau d'Etudes site, is recommended for further insight into the practice and relevance of mapping as a creative and resistant form of culture. Most maps are available as PDF files in both English and French. - Ryan Griffis