
Seemil Chaudhry. Navigation, 2021. Digital Collage.
This artwork explores the duality of maps and GPS technology as tools for both guidance and disorientation. The layered imagery, featuring fragments of map data interwoven with abstract textures, evokes the chaos and complexity of trying to find one's way. The sharp white lines cutting through the composition mimic paths or routes, yet their erratic nature suggests confusion and misdirection, symbolizing the moments when navigation leaves us feeling more lost than before. In a broader context, the piece critiques the colonial roots of cartography. Maps, historically wielded as instruments of power and control, were used to divide, claim, and reshape lands and peoples. This legacy complicates the seemingly neutral purpose of maps in modern navigation, reminding us that the lines we follow carry histories of domination and erasure. By juxtaposing abstraction with recognizable map elements, Navigation reflects the contradictory nature of maps: they guide us yet obscure, clarify yet confuse, liberate yet confine. The artwork invites viewers to question their reliance on these tools and consider the deeper implications of finding—or losing—one's way.