Special Issue on Art & Cartography

A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing." Oscar Wilde Maps are generator of ideas, gateways to old and new worlds, able to cope with both imaginary and hyperrealistic realms: This might be one reason among others why maps, mapping processes and mapping techniques became such a powerful paradigm in various artistic fieldsand on the other hand, why maps themselves often feature highly artful qualities.Whilst the aesthetic dimension of maps has dominated the artistic discourse in cartography over centuries, the relationships between cartography and art have been totally transformed during the last decade or two.The interface between art and cartography reaches a historically completely new dimension.A leap forward can be seen when both domains are combined to contribute to the ongoing debates about citizenship, nation, territories and, borders, transnational migration, capital and power asymmetries in a global perspective, territorial or public observation and measurement.This transformation is illustrated by several recent exhibitions, publications and conferences 1 .These examples are impressive examples of how artists make use of mapping and mapping techniques to comment on our world in a critical, ironic, utopian or imaginative way.The media they use range from textile creations to drawings/paintings, from photography to media installations.In other words: By adopting the almost unlimited means that contemporary cartography supports, a mapping "palette" has been provided, allowing the design and output of dedicated, politically relevant artistic interpretations.This artistic interest for maps resonates with the increasing level of ubiquity of maps in our societies.Maps are now parts of life"s daily activities, and works of arts involving maps now appear in galleries, public spaces, newspapers, television programmes, web sites, blogs and on bookcovers.