Topic outline

  • Subjective Atlas of Finland: A workshop on participatory forms of counter mapping


    17–21 April 2023
    Teacher: Annelys de Vet (NL/B) 

    www.bureaudevet.be
    www.disarmingdesign.com
     
    For further context and inspiration, check  www.subjectiveeditions.org 
     
     
    What is your lived experience of Finland? And how would you map that? This workshop questions the very act of cartography and aims for more multi-vocal and pluri-diverse representations of a place. During a five-day collaborative process, we aim to map Finland from the perspective of the participants of the workshop. From their habits to daily routes, from mobility to social fabrics; from beauty to fears; what are the issues at stake and which perspectives need more attention?

    Maps of any territory are expressions of ideological and political values, functioning as symbolic elements that reflect abstract and concrete national and local sentiments and goals. The politics of map-making and the power maps serve is part of a process of territorial socialisation. Moreover, map production is a process structured by political and social norms and values (whether the cartographer is aware of it or not). Mapping is an interpretive act, in which the map conveys not merely facts but also, and always, the author’s intentions and values. The politics of mapping however lie not only in what one maps, but also in how one maps. (Helga Tawil-Souri, 2011)

     
    The workshop offers a critical and joyful context for reflecting on and experimenting with forms of counter-mapping, non-linear storytelling and different methods of bringing a place in perspective. Sessions will take place inside and outside the university, during which we will capture social and urban phenomena, draw maps and design alternative flags. Participants are stimulated to explore their own positionality through different mapping methodologies. By bringing and editing these visual materials together to a publication, we open a dialogue on the narratives of a place. 
     
    Prior to the workshop, we ask participants to reflect on what Finland means to them:  in what aspects of your daily life do you encounter 'Finland'? Can you bring some items (like photos, snacks, objects, music or otherwise) in which this resonates?  In addition a laptop, smartphone and sketch material will be helpful.
     
     
    ​​ANNELYS DE VET (she/her, 1974, NL) is a Belgium based designer, researcher and educator. Her practice focuses on long-term participative design projects that engage in social and political struggles. She founded the temporary masters programme ‘Disarming Design’ (2019–2022) committed to design practices in situations of oppression, at the Sandberg Instituut Amsterdam – where she headed the MA in Design from 2009 to 2019. De Vet currently holds a position as PhD researcher at ARIA (Antwerp Research Instituut for the Arts). In 2012 she co-founded the design platform ‘Disarming Design from Palestine’ that fosters thought-provoking design from Palestine. 

    She initiated Subjective Editions that map countries from inside out, from a human perspective; publications include Subjective Atlas of Brussels (2018), Subjective Atlas of Colombia (2015), Subjective Atlas of Pakistan (2018) and Subjective Atlas of Amsterdam (2023). She edited ‘Design Dedication, adaptive mentalities in design education’ (Valiz, 2019) and regularly lectures on topics such as alternative cartography, critical pedagogy, and relational design practices.


    Header image from www.subjectiveeditions.org