Mapping as a Spatial, Political, and Environmental Practice

Semester and Year	FA 2011
Course Number	ARTS-UG1603
Section	001
Instructor	Louise Harpman
Days	Mon
Time	2:00 PM - 4:45 PM
Units	4.0
Level	U
Foundation Requirement

Description

This arts workshop looks at the practice of mapping as a cultural project with its attendant socio-political and environmental implications. The course looks critically at visual documentation of information, focusing on how our understanding of the environment is shaped by different maps and map-making protocols. While one generation might be most familiar with static directional maps, another is schooled in alternative and multivalent readings of interactive and digital mapping. Independent of their format, all maps are tools, none of which is non-neutral, as they all shape and challenge our understanding of space, place, and events. This arts workshop is conceived as a laboratory for the study and creation of maps. We will review the history of maps and map-making; create maps and diagrams for real-time events, including natural resource management, population migration, epidemics, weather, and public festivals; and present our work for public review and commentary . Authors may include Denis Cosgrove, Mark Monmonier, Michel de Certeau, James Corner, Peter Hall, Edward Tufte, Bill Rankin, Ingrid Gould Ellen, Nicholas Feltron, and Matt Ridley. In a workshop format, this class will ask students to create graphic and written responses to the weekly readings. Digital design experience (familiarity with the Adobe Suite) is helpful, but not required.

Course Type

Arts Workshops (ARTS-UG)