i have a certain affection for maps. they certainly are exclusive and certainly can be very badly done. but i like direction. i like figuring out where you are in context to another place. i like seeing strangely named streets or pathways. (i never noticed that they have such strange walking path names in whistler. "donkey punch" was one of them. yup.) i love planning out how you can get from one location to another on this concrete river that can connect you from edmonton to vancouver to toronto to texas to san diego to TIJUANA!
and that connotation of the map to the road trip. the drive. the walk. down a road that you think you kinda know just because you saw it on a map.
my favorite city map was the biomap or the "emotion map" because it focuses in on the city as a living breathing experience and not just a collection of geometrical and not-so-geometrical patterns. it also shows how those streets are where the magic happens. a romanticized concept, absolutely. this map does not show the inside of houses or apartments. but it doesn't fail to provide an idea of vibrancy of the street. in the public concrete stream of people so many things happen that we are unaware we are recognizing. this map reasserts those experiences not as good or bad but as lively qualities of cities.
after seeing these maps, i've no bloody idea what i'm going to do. oh jeez.
lol
ReplyDeleteBut also a serious question: does "magic" whitewash too much of what's in the biomaps?
I love the connection between maps and road-trips, I am the same way! I love looking at a map and planning where I am going to go (and always being surprised by how different it is in person than it seemed on the map.)
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you that the emotion maps were the best. When I’m traveling I love picking up a variety of maps and planning out my routes, but beyond pure logistics traditional maps never give you an indication of the places’ energy and character. Some of the most dynamic places aren’t highlighted on any map. The emotion maps create a form of personal narrative that transcend the usual two-dimensional representation of the city.
ReplyDelete@heather: yes, absolutely. i think the word "magic" is a little too naive. i was using it semi-sarcastically because even though there are magical moments on the street, most of them are just moments. the biomaps definitely show a greater range of high intensity emotions, not just good and comfortable ones. so, i guess, in retrospect, part of the magic of the city is also the discomfort, awkwardness, and even boredom one feels.
ReplyDelete@jarrod: i just can't think of a map without thinking "car", "get there", "music", and "WOLF FACE/MAN GRUNT". it seems kinda crazy i guess, but perhaps i'm not the only one?
@jamie: yeah, it's weird to think about it but only if you know a city can you kind of "see" a part of the map as vibrant and memorable. you focus in on it as if there is a mapped layer of situations and circumstances sitting above it.