Show Two | 04.17.2026
Allison Myers
GRAPHIC DESIGN
No map can ever be a true reflection of space; no map is neutral. These cartographic tools are shaped by the ideologies and intentions of their makers. While maps are not easily classified into a single group, most use the same methods of simplification to categorize, define, and commodify land. Instead of thinking about maps as reflections of space, we should start thinking about them as reflections of us. They show what we choose to prioritize, what we consider noteworthy, and how we organize the world around us. We become what we experience, and in response, we continue to reproduce those same systems. We rely on methods that simplify space that reflect broader societal values rather than the complexity of culture within it. I’m not offering a more accurate map, just making it harder to believe that any map ever was.