MapCarte initiative by the ICA Map Design Commission

Following on from a successful survey in 2012/13 that saw Damien Demaj and Kenneth Field publish in The Cartographic Journal to reassert design relevance in cartography (paper that won the Henry Johns prize in 2013), the ICA Commission on Map Design have announced an exciting initiative for 2014. Every day during the year, the Commission web site will publish a short daily blog post titled “MapCarte” to showcase examples of map design that represent some of the very best in classic and contemporary cartography. The intent is to build a repository of 365 maps that cover the breadth of cartographic practice to illustrate and emphasize the importance of map design. The Commission believes there is no other similar repository. The reason for such an effort is simple: how many times do we (as cartographers) get asked to point to examples of great cartography? And how many times do we struggle to come up with a list we can easily point to?

By the end of the year we will have created a compendium that can act as a reference for high quality map design that we can all share and point to. It will provide experts with a key list and hopefully show new map-makers the standards set. In some ways it’s a reaction to the mashup culture and the massive increase in poor mapping we see. We are intent on shifting the public demand for quality in maps instead of quantity and we hope that by showcasing great maps we can encourage standards in general to improve. Some of the maps you’ll have seen before – some possibly not. We’ll include both traditional print cartography and the very best that the internet has to offer. Each map will be illustrated and accompanied by a brief comment or two on why we feel the map exhibits great design.

Small selection of maps featured by the MapCarte initiative.

Hopefully the maps we’ll showcase will provide a barometer for modern map making, inspiration for those who seek ideas for how to map their data and also to improve the public’s appreciation of and demand for quality in maps. We also need help: Please consider emailing to the Commission Chair Kenneth Field or send him a tweet (@kennethfield) with your ideas and examples. We want this list to be inclusive so the more people who contribute ideas, the more we will generate a repository that truly represents the global cartographic community. Please also follow the series via Twitter (@ICAMapDesign) or the commission blog at mapdesign.icaci.org.

We hope you enjoy the series – a new daily cartographic treat to delight us in 2014!

Category: Commission News, Map Design

Tag: map gallery, MapCarte

Commissions at a glance

During ICC 2013 all commission chairs presented their commissions in a speed presentation. You can check out the presentation slides below (or via our ICC 2013 sub-page).

Tag: commission chairs, commissions, Germany, ICC, ICC2013

Invitation to ICC Workshop “Mapping in a Digital World”

Pre-Conference Workshop to ICC2013
24 August 2013 in Dresden, Germany

Organized by the ICA Commissions on Map Design and Neocartography, this one-day workshop will explore practical themes relating to the design of effective online maps and information products; focusing on realtime, interactivity and design not only of the map but of the user interface and experience to support cartography.

Morning presentations by a range of acknowledged experts in the field will seek to provide an overview of the state-of-the-art as well as touch on some of the challenges we face. Participants are encouraged to contribute to the workshop in two ways; either through offering a 15 minute paper on their own work in this area; or through a lightning talk. We may also do some lightning talks on the day so please come prepared to contribute to the workshop! Finally, we will share ideas and seek to develop common threads to take work in this area forward as part of a panel discussion.

Call for papers

Short papers: We invite short papers (15 mins with 5mins for questions) on aspects of design as it relates to web mapping for inclusion. Specifically of interest are conceptual and practical contributions exploring the design of maps in web and mobile environments, aesthetics, geovisualization, art in (and of) cartography and assessments of new and innovative methods. We are particularly interested in the challenges facing cartography in web and mobile environments and how it responds by re-imagining traditional practice in new technological paradigms.

Lightning talks: We also invite 5 minute lightning talks that share an idea, open a debate or deal with a very specific issue. These aren’t the place for long expositions and discussions of detailed research…simple ideas, eloquently expressed and fast!

To submit a paper or lighting talk idea please email Kenneth Field no later than 30th June 2013.