More often than not, maps are used as a base for our research and design, but we rarely wonder how they were formed, by whom, and for what purpose. Maps are subjective. They should be questioned in the same way that we question our elected officials. What is their hidden (or not so hidden) agenda? Who paid for them? Whose interests are they serving?
In drawing a map, we embed in it our political views, our observations and our informed choices. We draw attention to certain things and minimize the presence of others.
What’s missing in the map of a shopping mall?
When did New Jersey vanish from the MTA subway map?
Where is the REAL Green Line between Israel and the occupied territories?
And once we’ve figured out all that, how can we use our skills to transform the process of mapping into a new type of activism?
The class will explore several examples of mapping manipulation as well as mapping as a social activity in hope to generate new ideas and tools of intervention in the urban environment.
- Date
- May 15, 2010 at 3:00pm
- Location
- 177 Livingston, Brooklyn
- Facilitator
- John Emerson
- Limit
- none. please rsvp
- Fee
- none, but there is a TPS donation box at 177 Livingston
Comment
This looks great, hope it gets scheduled!
7 Oct 2009 10:23AM
pretty interesting topic. especially relevant for this upcoming weekend's Open House NY : http://www.ohny.org/
7 Oct 2009 10:58AM
Lewis Carroll on map-making:
"That's another thing we've learned from your Nation," said Mein Herr, "map-making. But we've carried it much further than you. What do you consider the largest map that would be really useful?"
"About six inches to the mile."
"Only six inches!" exclaimed Mein Herr. "We very soon got to six yards to the mile. Then we tried a hundred yards to the mile. And then came the grandest idea of all! We actually made a map of the country, on the scale of a mile to the mile!"
"Have you used it much?" I enquired.
"It has never been spread out, yet," said Mein Herr: "the farmers objected: they said it would cover the whole country, and shut out the sunlight! So we now use the country itself, as its own map, and I assure you it does nearly as well.”
8 Oct 2009 10:38AM
T. A. Z. The Temporary Autonomous Zone, Ontological Anarchy, Poetic Terrorism
By Hakim Bey:
... "The second generating force behind the TAZ springs from the historical development I call "the closure of the map." The last bit of Earth unclaimed by any nation-state was eaten up in 1899. Ours is the first century without terra incognita, without a frontier. Nationality is the highest principle of world governance--not one speck of rock in the South Seas can be left open, not one remote valley, not even the Moon and planets. This is the apotheosis of "territorial gangsterism." Not one square inch of Earth goes unpoliced or untaxed...in theory.
The "map" is a political abstract grid, a gigantic con enforced by the carrot/stick conditioning of the "Expert" State, until for most of us the map becomes the territory- -no longer "Turtle Island," but "the USA." And yet because the map is an abstraction it cannot cover Earth with 1:1 accuracy. Within the fractal complexities of actual geography the map can see only dimensional grids. Hidden enfolded immensities escape the measuring rod. The map is not accurate; the map cannot be accurate. "
8 Oct 2009 10:53AM
yes, i dig this
i need to develop this aspect of the Social Center project -- to build a user-addressable mapping website to map OSCs past and present worldwide... that's the objective
Wendy Brawer could teach this course
3 Jan 2010 2:45PM
I'm happy to help facilitate this discussion. I'm a graphic designer in Brooklyn and frequently write about design and activism.
For several years, I've been collecting interesting examples of mapping for activism on my blog:
http://backspace.com/notes/topic/mapping/7
I published an article on this topic last June in Communication Arts:
http://www.commarts.com/columns/mapping-power.html
You also can see some of my own mapping work up at:
http://backspace.com/is/in/the/house/work/
For a class, I would start with some general principles, background, and theory and then dig into practical examples that touch on different ways mapping has been used by activist groups. After then of course open it up for discussion amongst the group.
9 Mar 2010 11:12AM
Hi John and others,
We are going to schedule this class for May Saturday, 15, 3pm.
John, I'd like to go with your suggestion to start with some general principles, theory and background and open it up from there.
Assuming we will need to have the projection screen set up with web access. Any other materials participants should bring or that TPS should have on hand?
Looking forward to it.
11 Apr 2010 7:31PM
I'll bring my laptop and a presentation. If folks have interesting projects or campaigns they'd like to discuss, please post them in the notes!
http://nyc.thepublicschool.org/node/1630/notes
13 Apr 2010 8:32PM
Great, I and Richard Sullivan plan to attend
13 May 2010 7:12AM
Hello~!
I think my comment might be tad too late, as the class is only few hours away, but might be good for future reference.
This book 'Experimental Geography' might be relevant.
http://www.amazon.com/Experimental-Geography-Approaches-Landscape-Cartog...
as well as some interesting projects by artist Trevor Paglen
http://www.paglen.com
15 May 2010 9:31AM
thought i could make it in for this but can't. is it being live streamed by any chance?
15 May 2010 9:41AM
The class will not be streamed. besides not having the infrastructure, its sort of a TPS policy - classes are developed on-line but meet in-person.
15 May 2010 10:17AM
The class will not be streamed. besides not having the infrastructure, its sort of a TPS policy - classes are developed on-line but meet in-person.
15 May 2010 10:17AM