ION THE WEB – Issue 71

9 EYES

In May, 2007, Google mounted a black cylinder outfitted with nine cameras on top of a van and began trawling the streets of major urban centres. Anything and everything that lay within the vehicle’s wake was captured in 360 degrees, the resultant images stitched together in an infinite panoramic mobius strip to create what we now know as “Google Street View”.

Street view was an instant hit for its novelty alone, and has now become an important utility for all types of tasks. Researching a discount hotel in Rome and want to know if the neighbourhood is a dump? Google it and scope the block for pickpockets.

Montreal-based visual artist, Jon Rafman, looked at this new mapping tool and noticed something bluntly obvious that most of us have overlooked – photography.

9 Eyes is Rafman’s painstakingly curated collection of the Google god’s greatest snaps. The photos range in scope and style, from damning social commentary to heart achingly romantic landscapes; all shot with the same unblinking deference to the human condition that only a machine could provide.

[9-eyes.com]