Kulturutveckling & Residens

Artists as Map Maker
 

Artist as Map Maker is an artistic research programme of deep mapping. Developed in
conversation with Kultivera, and conceived as the first strand of Restless Practice, it has been
postponed until summer of 2021 due to Covid-19.

 

Artist duo Site Sit, will lead a group of international artists in an experimental structure of travel,
workshops, public sharings and exchange, to create new work that responds to the creative, social and physical ecology of Småland.

 

Alongside specific destinations such as museums and libraries, travel will be given emphasis as a point for creativity and reflection. Through the combined use of transport networks and public spaces they will harness a decentralised approach and act as connecting agents in the landscape. The group will inhabit various sites, including bus stations, hiking trails, Google Maps, trains, campsites, parks, Instagram and galleries. Their process of movement will also consider how allemansratten can aid this navigation, its shortcomings in urban spaces, and how this connects to our digital existence.

 

The increased connectivity afforded by digital technology has enabled a boost in ‘restlessness’, where visiting places and discovering new ideas is incredibly accessible. Physical unsettlement, juxtaposed with the continuity of search engines and the array of digital tools in our pockets, poses key questions within this research, including how this impacts a contemporary understanding of mapping, and what happens if/ when these technologies fail us.

 

In the spirit of the medieval tradition of Wandergeselle, these roaming artists will be seeking points of exchange. Skills, labour and knowledge will be bartered for food and accommodation, power sockets and wifi, or a conversation that triggers inspiration. This approach will act as a practical investigation into methods for enhanced sustainability within contemporary, mobile work patterns.

 

The accumulation of these experiences and the site responsive artworks produced, will demonstrate an alternative form of mapping, focusing on embodied experience, critical and abstract thought, and
different artistic processes. Through this we aim to generate different ways to learn about, and ask
questions of the landscape.

 

Our artists are: Sam Carvosso (England), Fuji Hoffmann (Sweden), Teddy Hunter (Wales) and
Outi Valanto (Finland).