Maps Tell Stories (That You Want Them to Tell)

On the first night of the Makrolab workshop here on Suomenlinna Island, Jo and Schuyler gave a great presentation called “Maps Tell Stories”, which outlined a number of examples that illustrate the narrative power of maps.

Schuyler provided an imaginary example of visualizing what Europe would look like if the sea level were to rise 10 metres – which would quite significantly change the shape of Europe (we would completely lose Amsterdam, for example). This example in particular made me reflect on the possibilties of maps to tell whatever story you wanted them to tell. This speculative map feeds an environmentalists’ argument that we risk losing Amsterdam if we pay no heed to the global warming problem. A conservative might, for example, attempt to map immigration patterns and use it as an argument for stricter controls.

Using mapping to display contradictions and speculations is undoubtedly a powerful narrative tool, that can be used for pure fantasy or political manipulation. Maps are often taken for granted, and seen as benign, but it is clearly important to question the source of the map and the intention behind representing a particular subset of data within it.