Map of the World by Alighiero e Boetti

Boetti was an Italian conceptual artist, who was considered to be a member of the art movement Arte Povera.  He was well known for his creation of artistic maps.  The maps that he produced were supposed to be a direct example of the physical and political boundaries each country has.  Each country has its set border but the country itself is represented by its flag.  Boetti made this embroidered mad in 1989 with the help of Afghani artisans.  While the map looks complete some countries are missing because they were not considered countries at the time.  At the same time that countries are missing because they had not developed yet, some of the countries that existed in 1989 no longer exist today.  Yes the world has changed, some countries exist now that didn’t and some countries no longer exist, but this map is supposed to depict how the world appeared at one time.  It is a piece of history that you cam merely look at and see how things can change.