Map art

Cartography gets abstract – and we don’t really care if it gets us lost.

 Map-making, or cartography, has not gone by the wayside - despite our dependence on mobile maps and smart phone apps.

Rather, another type of mapping is occurring, where the focus is on pattern and graphics and not so much on navigation and information. Cartography distilled to point, line and color is emerging as a new take on an ancient art form.

3 Story’s own Madeleine Boos is a firm believer in white space. “I appreciate a sea of white around a single image in a gallery setting. However, I don’t have the art to pull off effortless minimalism in my own home,” she says.

Faced with big white walls in her Tucson home, she needed “a collection, a series, or a composition that told a story”. So why not maps? They have scale, history and substance, with vintage, hand-drawn maps, especially, representing a place in time.

She hung a Nolli map of Rome in twelve framed plates (see below).

The Nolli map captures the city's urban form, detailing the fabric of the buildings instead of just the street organization.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another interpretation of the classic map is this tryptic headboard, via 47 Park Avenue

 

It turns out transit maps, city grids, and landscape patterns make for bold and attractive graphics. For the modernist, who seeks an alternative to ink on parchment, check out these stylish and affordable maps.

* Lineposters.com offers a series of maps and graphic representations of city transit systems in an 18 x 24 format. They range from $20 - $30 unframed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• City Prints has created its own series of city maps, which are an artistic study of line, curve and color. The 12 x 12 format lends itself to various rhythmic  groupings. The maps start at $40 and would add a punch of color to any wall. Here are a few of our favorites:

 

• Local artist and architect Bill Mackey has created a series of overlay maps designed to “re-orient people’s perceptions of space and scale by contrast and theme”. His maps provide social commentary within the local context of Tucson. Better yet, they’re aesthetically pleasing. 8 ½ x 11 lithographs are available upon request for about $20.

 

For more information on Bill Mackey, visit Worker, Inc.

 

 

 

 

 

• One last idea for those big white walls: stickers, or vinyl map decals, to be precise. They are affordable, removable and no-mess appliques, ranging from $39 to $265

Vinyl Impression from the UK creates wall stickers for a variety of environments and they're available on Etsy. The extra large world map measuring 14 feet by 8 feet is perfect for the world traveler.

 

 

 

 

 

From wall-decals.eu comes Spicy world map (approximately $75) ships from Portugal for around $14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zapoart - "great graphic design in a simple and fun way"

 

 

We hope you're inspired to "get lost" in your own big white walls!