Emotion maps

Abstract. My perspective of Emotion Maps is not maps of emotions or the emotions evoked by spaces mapped or by mapping emotions evoked through the process of moving through a space. But – it is what we experience as ‘emotional uplifting’, when we view a cartographic artefact, whereby we elevate that artefact from a tool to communicate about geography to a piece of art. This is based on the premise of ‘Emotional Architecture’ proposed by by Mathias Goéritz in 1953 to describe an architecture elevated to art for the purpose of inspiring emotion (Loiseau, 2017). This led me to thinking about whether there are any maps that also inspire emotion.

As rightly noted by a reviewer of this contribution (and thank you to reviewers for considering this paper and your welcomed reviews), what I am probably addressing is ‘aesthetic pleasure’. However, in order to ‘fit’ with Goéritz’s Emotional Architecture concept, I have stayed with my original title.

As my research background is not in the area of Art and Cartography, I acknowledge that here I tread on dangerous ground. The reason for undertaking this research was to ascertain whether certain cartographic products may, when viewed, inspire viewers and uplift their emotions. This proposition needed to be tested by assessing a selection of cartographic artefacts against one Art theory. The theory papers from the era that was applied is Warehouse Theory.