The Maps of Phantom Islands

Agnieszka Kurant

Much of Agnieszka Kurant’s work investigates ‘the economy of the invisible’ in which errors, rumours and myths exist as if real, and go on to influence political and economic systems. For The Maps of Phantom Islands, Kurant researched non-existent islands that have appeared in maps throughout history. Some were the results of mirages or map-making errors; in others they were inventions, created by explorers to acquire funding for further expeditions. Many of these non-existent islands were sources of real financial transactions and in some instances nearly led to wars.
It was only the advent of aerial photography in the 1940s that these non-existent islands finally disappeared. The quest now is to accurately map the Universe and deep space. Again these endeavours can be for acquiring knowledge, or political and economic means.
Kurant renminds us that theories can be modified or debunked, and no doubt some of the knowledge which we hold to be true today will transform into the phantoms of the future.