Designerly mapping practices at the crossroads of cartography and urbanism: a processual account of three re-cartographies of southwest Flanders

Abstract

Re-cartography is a designerly mapping practice that aims to challenge dominant spatial epistemologies while expanding the scope of our spatial imagination. Particularly relevant to contemporary complex spatial problematics, and emerging within the context of urbanism, re-cartography is an intrinsically projective practice that is orientated towards a (re)shaping of the environment. This paper presents a short processual account of three re-cartographies of southwest Flanders. These three cases represent an ongoing attempt to reimagine the region in contemporary terms. Taken together, they remap the area in terms of multiplicity, heterogeneity, and hybridity, and reimagine the territory as a dynamic layering of different historical processes and relationships. To this end, the maps rethink common cartographic strategies and procedures-such as element selection, categorization, and symbolization, periodization, layering, scaling, and atlas composition-and recombine them in novel ways. They also demonstrate the relevance of re-cartography as an urban design tool: as a practice with the capacity to incorporate various perspectives, both context and potential, re-cartography is able to suggest a universe of latent possiblities within a given site. Of interest to cartographic theory is the observation that re-cartography treats both the territory and the map as ongoing processes. In this sense, the cases reflect the almost pragmatic coexistence of two seemingly contradictory cartographic ontologies at the heart of urbanism: the consideration of the map as a (partial) workable mirror and a concomitant engagement with the postrepresentational quality of the map as a project.

Development and use of a geoinformation system for revealing urban problems

“…This is because they cover the epistemology and theory of urban mapping [16]. In [17], there is an attempt to rethink the urban core concept of a "region" in terms of spatial epistemology. The studies that are excessively theorized also make it difficult to adapt the results to solve the complex problem of managing urban development by using GIS technology.…”

“…However, the GIS in the studies of these processes is used by a very limited number (10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20) of researchers, who are cited, in particular, in [20][21][22]. Thus, the devised GIS is intended to be included into analyzing urban processes.…”

Visualizing urban and regional worlds: power, politics, and practices

“…The world's longest rivers as well as the Garonne river and its estuary are used as examples to demonstrate the capacity and innovative merits of the method. Through three re-cartographies of southwest Flanders, Cattoor (2015Cattoor ( , page 1283 discusses how re-cartography entails the novel bundling and combination of conventional cartographic procedures, and argues the relevancy of (re)cartography as an urban design tool, making reference to cartography's capabilities of expanding and reshaping designers' visions of cities and regions.…”