Close Encounters features a flock of telescopes and binoculars encircling an old globe dating to before the Berlin Conference (1884-1885), when most of the world was divided by the West. Over the location of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), one can read the ominous words ‘Association Internationale du Congo’, founded by Leopold II in 1879 and, after six years, becoming the Congo Free State. Like flies around a precious pie, prospecting for natural treasures, the tools and props of the Enlightenment explorers are swarming around the globe. The explosive amount of telescopes and binoculars no longer allows the world to be seen in its entirety and prompts reflection on the continuous Western extractivist logic, hidden under a scientific exploratory veil.