Read: Place on the Web #2
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Over the past couple of weeks we have been considering submissions from writers from all around the world, which has been an enjoyable but very difficult task. And it reminds us again of how much fantastic writing, photography and illustration on the subject of place that there is out there, leading us to the second in our semi-regular series of posts of our favourite online projects…
Created by Gareth E. Rees (whose Marshland: Dreams and Nightmares on the Edge of London is much admired at Elsewhere towers), Unofficial Britain is dedicated to exploring and celebrating the forgotten or unchampioned corners of the British Isles, from the urban to the rural via the edgelands in between. Recent posts have featured the link between folk and punk, abandoned rollercoasters, and a search for Sooty and Sweep… (link)
There are few better websites out there for the cartographically curious than Strange Maps, a curated collection that uses maps to explore a number of topics in many weird and wonderful ways. Historical curiosities help us understand how the world was perceived in times past, whilst more modern examples illustrate how cartography can be utilised to help us understand the world around us. (link)
We first discovered the work of writer Laurence Mitchell in the pages of Hidden Europe magazine, where he is a regular contributor. He is also the author of Slow Travel guides to Norfolk and Suffolk as well as a range of guidebooks including Serbia and Kyrgyzstan. His blog features articles from such far flung places, as well as explorations of his more immediate surroundings and is one of our favourite “personal” blogs on place out there. (link)
We became aware of the Urban Sketchers project through the Berlin chapter, and in particular the work of Rolf Schröter, whose sketches of our home city superbly capture the atmosphere of the streets and the parks, the U-Bahn carriages and the beer gardens. The manifesto of the Urban Sketching movement makes it clear what they are all about, as they aim “to raise the artistic, storytelling and educational value of location drawing, promoting its practice and connecting people around the world who draw on location where they live and travel. We aim to show the world, one drawing at a time.” (link)
A spin-off project from The Atlantic, CityLab’s updates land on our twitter feed and on facebook throughout the day and are always worth a look. A quick glance at the home page is all you need to see what they are all about - an article on the burdens of hosting the Super Bowl, infographics exploring the massive urban growth of East Asia, and how African hip hop is bridging the cultural gap in China. (link)
We are always interested in discovering new projects on place, so if you have any suggestions please let us know either via email or through facebook / twitter.
(Image credit: From National Park Service via Wikimedia, Public Domain)