Rain and Runoff: How much of the land is permeable or impermeable? How much water flows off the land into the stream in a one-inch rainfall?

 

Circulation and Movement: How do people (and other entities) move through and along this landscape? Where do they intentionally stop?

 

Land use and Inhabitation: How do people use and occupy the landscape? What kinds of evidence can we find that shows us that?

 

Flora and Fauna: What is important about the vegetation and animals that inhabit this landscape? 

 

Culverted Stream: Where is the stream precisely, and how does it get represented so everyone will know its specific dimensions and elevations? This will include 3-D modeling.

 

Underground systems: In addition to the stream itself, what other undergrounds systems can be identified and mapped?

 

Past and Future: How has this landscape developed over time to become what it is today, and what plans are in place for future transformation? 

 

Terrain and Surface: In the vein of William Morrish’s essay on Civilizing Terrains, what kind of terrain does the topography of the stream constitute? How does the surface of the land interact with that existing terrain?

 

Boundaries, Thresholds and Territory: Where are there identifiable areas of inhabitation? How are their edges defined and crossed? 

 

The cartographic imagination is a study of the importance of multiple representations – of seeing and depicting various realities depending on the relevance of the occasion. A particular topography can, for example, be represented by its roads or by its undulating terrain or perhaps by a combination of the two. It all depends on the purpose for of the map and the story it is trying to tell. 

 

In new teams of two, your task is to develop maps of the stream, the floodplain, the community and its slightly larger environment. Each individual will make their own map, and each team’s work will be shared and used by everyone going forward, and so the primary task is to understand and represent the relevant information about your topic so that others can comprehend it and use it in their own work.

 

Ten topics are identified, each with a leading question or two to suggest the scope and content of the mapping project. It is up to each individual to identify relevant sources of information, distill findings, and synthesize them into an 18” x 24” map of the stream landscape. All maps should address issues of representation, narrative and “mapping” as cartographic and communicative acts.

 

As always, we will have an in-progress pin-up on Wednesday, March 3 and a final pin-up on Wednesday, March 10. 

Watersheds: Jaimie and Nick

Rain/Runoff: Deshawn and Kong

Flora & Fauna: Mei, Sam D

Circulation & Movement: Kelci, Levi

Terrain & Surface: Ava, Connor

Past & Future: Andrew, Rachel

Land Use & Inhabitation: Hailey, Willa

Boundaries, Thresholds & Territory: Faith, Garret

Underworlds: Brendyn, Grant, Sam DG, Alex


LOOK FOR IMPORTANT PLACES, PATTERNS, NOTABLE ABSENCES/BREAKS IN THE PATTERN, AND POTENTIALS FOR CHANGE

1. What's important about this topic or line of inquiry about our stream/terrain/community?
2. Are there identifiable patterns to things that you're finding?
3. Are there anomalies? Things that break the pattern?
4. What potentials are there for change?

There's a need for synthesis of the material you're gathering and some sort of narrative about the land and landscape as you come to understand it.

5. The early contour maps of landmasses translated this innovative approach to describing fluvial geomorphology to terrestrial landform.

It uses chiaroscuro, emphasis on light and dark contrasting the entire composition .

It balances real with imaginative, not focusing too much on realism as that hinders the design element of the drawing.

A successful shaded-relief drawing evokes mood, sensation, composition, and atmosphere.  

Shaded relief is deceptive due to its lack of omission or hierarchy is its limitation.

Bruno Taut brought to life his alpine architecture sketches through different shades of the same tone.

Both maps show shadows through tonal variation. 

2.       In the Field study of London, the designer took a more abstract approach as compared to the Old Town Barcelona map.

3.       The simplicity of figure ground is why this technique is so effective.