{"id":1787528,"date":"2019-07-25T09:42:22","date_gmt":"2019-07-25T13:42:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/?p=1787528"},"modified":"2020-04-06T17:03:46","modified_gmt":"2020-04-06T21:03:46","slug":"the-art-of-illustrated-maps-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2019\/07\/the-art-of-illustrated-maps-review\/","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Illustrated Maps"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Map illustrations. Illustrated maps. Pictorial maps. Map art. There are many different names for a form of mapmaking that is, to appropriate a phrase, \u201cnot intended for navigation,\u201d but rather for purposes such as advertising and promotion, political propoganda, decoration, or simply pure art. You may not be able to find your way home with such maps, but that\u2019s not to say they don\u2019t have a purpose.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve reviewed books about maps in this general field before. Stephen J. Hornsby\u2019s Picturing America<\/em><\/a> (reviewed here<\/a>) explores the rich pictorial map tradition in the United States during the early and mid-20th century. The Art of Map Illustration<\/em><\/a> (reviewed here<\/a>), on the other hand, is a focused, step-by-step guide to the how<\/em> of modern-day map illustration.<\/p>\n

The Art of Illustrated Maps: A Complete Guide to Creative Mapmaking\u2019s History, Process and Inspiration<\/em><\/a><\/strong> (HOW Books, October 2015) falls somewhere in between. Written by John Roman<\/a>, it\u2019s a book that talks about the creative process in considerable detail, and gives many contemporary examples of map illustrations, but tries to place that process in the context of the history of map illustrations.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Roman isn\u2019t just a working illustrator with an extensive portfolio of map illustrations, but also a professor at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. That\u2019s reflected in the first part of The Art of Illustrated Maps<\/em>, which is a history of illustrated maps that traces their origins to Claudius Ptolemy, notes their divergence from more scientific cartography (he distinguishes between illustrated maps and cartographic or technical maps) and highlights the discovery of linear perspective as \u201cthe most significant advance in the airts to aid the map illustrator. Without it, art would have remained abstract and objective, and illlustrated maps would lack the three-dimensional effect that makes such imagery so visually captivating\u201d (p. 38).<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a bit under-researched, and there\u2019s a fair bit of historical hand-waving: it doesn\u2019t stand up against scholarly histories of cartography, but as a brief survey whose intended audience is students of map illustration\u2014I strongly suspect this is derived from his college lectures\u2014it serves its purpose. It establishes, like Hornsby\u2019s Picturing America<\/em>, that map illustration has a tradition.<\/p>\n

From there we move on to the present day and the practical concerns of making illustrated maps. Part II talks about the creative process, inspiration, and communicating with the viewer, using some basic art principles. It seems a bit thin for a book, and not quite on topic, until you realize that this is exactly the sort of thing you\u2019d find in a college instructor\u2019s lectures, so, again, I assume that\u2019s where this material comes from.<\/p>\n

In Part III Roman takes us through the process of creating two of his map illustrations\u2014one for a magazine, the other a campus map (campus maps make up a large part of his portfolio<\/a>); Part IV collects examples of work by other map illustrators, giving us a greater sense of the diversity of work in this field, as well as what\u2019s possible, more so than we would have gotten from examining Roman\u2019s own oeuvre.<\/p>\n

The end result is a book that does not break any new ground from a research perspective and is of limited use as a reference, but makes a perfectly fine textbook for students of map illustration who are new to the form. Understand it as such.<\/p>\n

Previously: The Art of Illustrated Maps<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/a>The Art of Illustrated Maps: A Complete Guide to Creative Mapmaking\u2019s History, Process and Inspiration<\/em><\/strong><\/a>
\nby John Roman
\nHOW Books, October 2015
\nAmazon<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Map illustrations. Illustrated maps. Pictorial maps. Map art. There are many different names for a form of mapmaking that is, to appropriate a phrase, \u201cnot intended for navigation,\u201d but rather for purposes such as advertising… More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[],"autoblue_post_url":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,2],"tags":[30,460],"class_list":["post-1787528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art","category-book-reviews","tag-books","tag-pictorial-maps"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1560,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2016\/04\/the-golden-age-of-american-pictorial-maps\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":0},"title":"The Golden Age of American Pictorial Maps","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"16 April 2016","format":"link","excerpt":"The Golden Age of American Pictorial Maps is an exhibition running until 3 September 2016 at the University of Southern Maine's Osher Map Library. (If you can't go there physically, there's plenty online at the link, too.) \"Curated by Dr. Stephen J. Hornsby, co-editor of the Historical Atlas of Maine\u00a0[previously]\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Antique Maps"","block_context":{"text":"Antique Maps","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/antique-maps\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Capital of a New Trade Empire, 1929. Sheet map, 33\u00d730 cm. Osher Map Library, University of Southern Maine.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/pictorial-maps-cleveland-1024x924.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/pictorial-maps-cleveland-1024x924.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/pictorial-maps-cleveland-1024x924.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/pictorial-maps-cleveland-1024x924.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5896,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2017\/11\/picturing-america-the-golden-age-of-pictorial-maps\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":1},"title":"Picturing America: The Golden Age of Pictorial Maps","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"16 November 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"With Picturing America: The Golden Age of Pictorial Maps (University of Chicago Press, March 2017), Stephen J. Hornsby makes the case for the pictorial map as a distinct and significant genre of mapmaking that is worthy of study and preservation. Because pictorial maps were artistic rather than scientific, Hornsby argues,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Art"","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/art\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/picturing-america-wide-232x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4241,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2017\/04\/picturing-america\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":2},"title":"Picturing America","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"12 April 2017","format":"link","excerpt":"Meanwhile, at All Over the Map, Greg Miller has a look at another\u00a0professor with another book: Stephen J. Hornsby, who curated an exhibition of American pictorial maps at the Osher Map Library last year, has published a book on the subject:\u00a0Picturing America: The Golden Age of Pictorial Maps, out last\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Art"","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/art\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/picturing-america-wide-116x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1788795,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2020\/04\/how-to-make-an-illustrated-map\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":3},"title":"How to Make an Illustrated Map","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"27 April 2020","format":"link","excerpt":"In the travel section of yesterday\u2019s New York Times, map illustrator Nate Padavick offers a way to make lemonade from travel-restriction lemons with a short guide to making an illustrated map (pictorial map, map illustration\u2014the terms are roughly interchangeable) of a favourite place\u2014a neighbourhood, a vacation spot, \u201ca place you\u2019ve\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Art"","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/art\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Five Squares + One Triangle in My Neighborhood (Nate Padavick)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/padavick-nytimes-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/padavick-nytimes-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/padavick-nytimes-1024x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/padavick-nytimes-1024x1024.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2950,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2016\/09\/war-map-an-exhibition-of-pictorial-conflict-maps\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":4},"title":"War Map: An Exhibition of Pictorial Conflict Maps","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"29 September 2016","format":"link","excerpt":"We're familiar with caricature maps from before and during the First World War: maps that reimagine various countries as warring animals or caricatured faces. These aren't the only\u00a0examples of persuasive cartography or of pictorial maps of this or other wars, but I imagine they'll be front and centre at a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Antique Maps"","block_context":{"text":"Antique Maps","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/antique-maps\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"war-map","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/war-map.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/war-map.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/war-map.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/war-map.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5498,"url":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2017\/10\/you-are-here-nyc-mapping-the-soul-of-the-city\/","url_meta":{"origin":1787528,"position":5},"title":"You Are Here: NYC: Mapping the Soul of the City","author":"Jonathan Crowe","date":"24 October 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"An exhibition taking place now at the New York City Library,\u00a0Picturing the City: Illustrated Maps of NYC, features 16 pictorial maps from the Library's collection of illustrations. Running until 9 April 2018, it's curated by Katharine Harmon, whose book,\u00a0You Are Here: NYC: Mapping the Soul of the City, came out\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Art"","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/category\/art\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"You Are Here NYC: Mapping the Soul of the City","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.maproomblog.com\/xq\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/you-are-here-nyc-213x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1787528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1787528"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1787528\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1788643,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1787528\/revisions\/1788643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1787528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1787528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1787528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}