Firstly discussion on the many varied roles of maps in a historical context: accuracy came far behind expressions of power, glory, wealth and plain old PR. Commissioning maps has always been a very expensive business with the production process not far behind.
These days the aims haven’t changed so very much but the production process is much simpler due to digitalisation and access to accurate information. The creative interpretation is as, if not more, lively than ever. The colours and mark-making from across the centuries spark off many ideas relevant to our lives today, particularly for print and textiles.
Here are a few photos of what I’ve seen recently:
Susan Stockwell’s maps remind one of the body’s circulatory system. One of her recent pieces shows the river Thames filled with red filigree routes instead of water. Very visceral yet also haunting. It reminds me of the Skin exhibition (but that is another subject).
The British Library displays an impressive array from its extensive collection with many maps including encyclopaedic knowledge of the area covered in addition to the cartography, as can be seen in this detail of Canada.
A new map was recently produced by different groups using the everyday background of the London A-Z.
This is, as ever, just a snippet of the information I have so please contact me for anything more detailed.
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