5 replies to this topic

[Martin Gamache]

Yesterday I heard a good interview with Vittorio Storaro. He discussed the importance of knowing our historic artistic roots and that even if we do not want to recreate art in the same style, we are nevertheless a product of that history. In that spirit I thought I would post a link to the master's work to contrast with the future we've been discussing (Google Maps).

[Nick Springer]

That's a great site about Imhof. I think what really sets him apart as a cartographer was that he was a true artist as well. His paintings and watercolors are very beautiful and lifelike, and those skills enabled him to create maps that felt alive and give readers a true sense of the place.

These are skill that are not taught in modern cartography programs, but should be. I know I had to seek out independent study in graphic design while in college. I should have taken more art classes.

I would love to see some of the relief models in person.

[ELeFevre]

These are skill that are not taught in modern cartography programs, but should be.  I know I had to seek out independent study in graphic design while in college.  I should have taken more art classes.

I agree 100%. Graphic design and art courses should be a prerequisite to an academic focus in cartography. In the program I'm currently in, very few of my peers have any experience with graphic design. There seems to be a general attitude that art and science do net mesh, which is a complete contradiction in my opinion. Art is just something some people are good at and others are not. Which is not true.

Thanks for the link. Imhof's work is inspiring. Like Nick said, his art really captures the sense of place in ways rarely seen. Erin

[Nick Springer]

Erin,

This is a key point.

There seems to be a general attitude that art and science do net mesh

I think that cartography is a unique intersection of art and science. I can think of any other scientific disciplines where the visual communication of the results of research and analysis are so central to it's purpose.

[Martin Gamache]

"To create beauty, a purely technical, practical arrangement of things is not sufficient. Beauty is, to a large extent, irrational. Artistic talent. Aesthetic sensitivity, sense of proportion, of harmony, of form and color, and of graphical interplay are indispensable to the creation of a beautiful map and thus to a clear and expressive map.”

Eduard Imhof , Cartographic Relief Presentation -1965


"The good cartographer is both a scientist and an artist. He must have a thorough knowledge of his subject and model, the Earth.. He must have the ability to generalize intelligently and to make a right selection of the features to show. These are represented by means of lines or colors; and the effective use of lines or colors requires more than knowledge of the subject - it requires artistic judgement."

Erwin Josephus Raisz
(1893-1968)


"The topographic work, therefore, is made up of two distinct branches, mathematical and artistic. The former is comparatively easy to master; the later is rather a gift than an acquirment."

Henry Gannett, USGS 1887

[Martin Gamache]

Check out John Krygier's paper as well, for a weightier discussion of these topics.

mg