You know what a contemporary map looks like — boring, informational. Point A to Point B. But one peek into Gestalten’s beautiful book A Map of the World , a collection of the “contrarians” of cartography, will change your mind. These maps — colorful, inaccurate, cut from paper or painted on, make us want to take a thousand journeys. As Antonis Antoniou writes in the book’s preface, they “act as an antidote to cartographic monotony and the modern-day obsession for accuracy… Ultimately, it’s about storytelling. It’s about re-humanizing the process of understanding our surroundings and through this, ourselves. In all their differences, these maps allows space for dreaming.” Check out a few of our favorites after the jump, and then be sure to head here for more about A Map of the World.
Borgarmynd, “Reykjavik Center,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Dorothy, “Film Map” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Young & Rubicam Italy, “Australia,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
João Lauro Fonte, “Boots Adventures in London,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Masako Kubo, “Kyushu Train All Stars,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Katherine Baxter, “New York Poster,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
James Gulliver Hancock, “Venezia,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Vesa Sammalisto, “Hartwall Lapin Kulta,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Famille Summerbelle, “London/UK,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten
Vesa Sammalisto, “Island of Manhattan,” from A Map of the World, Gestalten