Mapscapes on the Urban Surface: Notes in the Form of a Photo Essay (Istanbul, 2010)

Abstract

Historical maps displayed in power-related settings have often been considered from a critical, representational perspective and have been researched with regard to their predictive, ideological content. With the recent emergence of a post-representational approach to cartography, a call for contextual creative research on maps “in the wild” has emerged. The consideration of pervasive digital cartography has increased attention toward aspects such as context-specific design, display formats, and areas. Common people encounter these digital “cartifacts,” as well as more traditional ones, within the everyday urban environment (mainly as part of city wallscapes). Photography could be used to profitably research “mapscapes” as they are perceived, lived, and felt. The photographic selective reading of cartographic signs on urban surfaces, beyond being a means of playfully engaging the material spatialities of maps, could also serve as a tool for generating map theorization. A photo essay based on cartographic encounters in Istanbul in 2010 is provided here as an example of creative exchange between map studies and visual methodologies.