The World of C3I

A rare example of ‘Steinbergian cartography.’

This rare poster map lays out the world of defense contracting (C3I = Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence) during the late 1980s, using the iconic format introduced by Saul Steinberg’s 1976 View of the World from 9th Avenue. Geographic space and natural features are distorted to where they are almost unrecognizable, serving only as spatial dividers. Pictorial features like the Rocky Mountains, Gateway Arch, and Eiffel Tower give the barest impression of ‘place.’ State and international borders are also heavily stylized, which presents an oddly unified image for a heavily competitive industry.

America’s West Coast is shown at the forefront, home to ten companies including Stanford Telecommunications, Hughes Aircraft Company, and Ramtek. The vast space from California to the Mississippi River is truncated into three squat sections – the Rocky Mountains, St. Louis (McDonnell Douglas), and Iowa (Rockwell International). Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. border the Mighty Mississippi, with the rest of the Atlantic coast from Canada to Florida following behind. Across the pond, four international companies are recognized from Sweden (Philips), West Germany (Siemens), France (Thomson-CSF), and Israel (Tadiran).

Throughout the image, national identities are sacrificed in favor of corporate ego. Profiles of each company headquarters are the most faithful representations, surpassed in size and importance only by their respective logos. Above all fly the all-seeing eyes of global satellites and the Boeing E-3 Sentry.

The map was designed by artist Kirby Scudder and published in 1987 by Pacific Ventures. One of a handful of similar works by Scudder that draws directly upon Steinbergian Cartography. This is an exceptionally scarce example, unlisted in WorldCat or other online databases as of September 2024. See Rumsey #13182.000 and #10633.000 for other maps by Kirby Scudder. Further information available at the Saul Steinberg Foundation.