Maps on Vinyl

Coming to the UK later this month is a book by Damien Saunder.

It is called Maps on Vinyl.

Description from the author/publisher.

Visit the website and scroll down to see lots of examples.

Presenting 415 album covers – beautifully reproduced, expertly laid out and accompanied by deeply researched text – Maps on Vinyl will especially appeal to map enthusiasts, vinyl junkies, music fans, graphic designers and artists.

The book is the brainchild of renowned Australian cartographer Damien Saunder, whose expertise has been utilised by Apple, National Geographic, Earth (the world’s largest atlas) and even Roger Federer. A keen crate-digger, he has amassed possibly the world’s most extensive private collection of records featuring maps on their covers, resulting in this one-of-a-kind book. 


Records by artists including Madonna, Oasis, Coldplay, Grateful Dead, Bob Marley, XTC, MC5, Queen, New Order, James Brown, Brian Eno and Weezer are featured, with cover art created by many giants of the design world, including Peter Saville, Curtis McNair, Richard Gray, Alton Kelly, Stanley Mouse, Neville Garrick, Roger Dean and Pedro Bell.

The records headlined span music from 1939 to today, and the book is divided into eight chapters highlighting different aspects of the collection – ‘C(art)ography’, ‘We Built This City’, ‘On the Road’, ‘African Beats’, ‘Astroworlds’, ‘Ocean Whispers’, ‘Maps with Attitude’ and ‘Music from Here’.

Maps on Vinyl is a beautiful artefact, but it’s also an important historical and cultural document, revealing how maps have been used in album cover design to reinforce a lyrical story, share a political view, express concern for the state of the world or creatively identify the origins of the music and the people who make it.

There's a Guardian piece about the author here.

It provides more details about the book.

The selection criteria for the book was strict: no landscape paintings; no satellite photography. “A map had to be an abstraction of a geographic form – real or fictitious – and show spatial relationships. That distinction helped narrow the collection.”

While maps are often celebrated for their beauty, they can also contain layers of meaning, says Saunder. “Even the most basic shapes of countries can draw out a lot of feelings – positive and negative.”

It also provides a few examples of maps that were included...

Such as this cover from Talking Heads.

All proceeds from the sale of the book are going to Support Act, an organisation helping musicians deal with the emotional, physical and financial challenges rife in the industry.

I shall certainly be getting a copy of this.

The Power of Where

 That's the title of a new book by Jack Dangermond in association with the wider GIS community.

A description:

The Power of Where presents the visionary concepts of Jack Dangermond, cofounder of Esri®, the world’s leading mapping software company. With a foreword by bestselling author and writer for The Atlantic, James Fallows, it’s filled with the latest web maps, illustrations, and real-life stories from a vibrant global community of geographic information systems (GIS) users. If you’ve never heard of GIS, this is the book for you, and if you think you know what GIS is, you’ll discover much more.

From the Ring of Fire to the Fertile Crescent, The Power of Where takes us on a visual and narrative journey into the world of modern GIS and reveals its growing potential to address the world’s greatest challenges. The technology is already ubiquitous, from running city governments and performing civic science to conserving open spaces and managing logistics—virtually every human endeavor.

Central to the book is the geographic approach—a way of solving problems that uses spatial location to perceive and understand patterns—from wildlife migration and rising seas to urban planning and food production. Drawing from 60 years of research and experience, the author writes from a fervent conviction that through this approach, we can confront climate change, hunger, water scarcity, inequity, and issues large and small in our everyday lives.

The book describes the methods of the geographic approach—visualization, communication, analysis, collaboration, accounting, and design—and shows how vast amounts of integrated data are propelling spatial applications into the mainstream. A companion website brings interactive maps and stories to life and serves as a starting point for students and educators—and anyone considering joining the GIS user community.

The Power of Where reveals how technologies such as web services, mobile devices, artificial intelligence, extended reality, and 3D visualization intersect with GIS and outlines the new opportunities they are creating. Its maps and stories arise from a passion for the power of place and from the mutually reinforcing revolutions in Earth observation, analysis, and collaboration that GIS and the human spirit make possible.

Explore live examples from the book and learn more about interactive mapping and the tools of modern GIS

Widely acknowledged as the leading visionary in the field of geographic information system (GIS) technology, Jack Dangermond and his wife, Laura, launched the Environmental Systems Research Institute in 1969 with a shared vision that system thinking along with computer mapping and spatial analysis could help people design a better future. For more than 50 years, their vision has guided Esri’s GIS mapping and analytic technologies worldwide. Jack’s life work has brought many honors, including the Planet and Humanity Medal from the International Geographical Union, the Champions of Earth Award from the United Nations, and the Alexander Graham Bell Medal from the National Geographic Society. Jack and Laura live in their hometown of Redlands, CA, where Esri is based.

Why Study Geography?

 Plenty of mentions for GIS and Google Earth in this latest books of mine.

"I have always been a Geographer and have always believed that the state of geography in universities depends on attracting good sixth formers to become undergraduates."

Andrew Goudie 

My latest solo authored book came out earlier this week. I've had copies for a week, and colleagues and some of those who contributed to the book have been receiving copies as well. Family copies are earmarked and  I'm delighted with the finished product, which is part of a growing series of books asking the same question for different subjects.

There's already been interest from a number of countries including the USA and Turkey, and I'm hoping for further reviews in addition to the ones that the publishers have already elicited from geographical journals and organisations, and individuals who can help the book reach its intended markets.

It is called 'Why Study Geography' and is published by the London Publishing Partnership.

It explores why students should continue to study the subject, and provides answers to a number of key questions from Y9-13, plus their parents and UCAS tutors.

Here they are opposite on the Contents page.

The final chapter contains links to over 50 resources to support your exploration of geography including films, books, websites, podcasts and others.

It explores all aspects of the subject and is unashamedly 100% geography. 

There are so many people who have helped me out with the book in various ways. These include colleagues from the GA and the RGS, along with teaching colleagues. It includes vignettes from a number of people including Kit Racklet, Corinna Hawkes and Ben Hennig. There are details of how the subject developed, and more on academic geography. It finishes by exploring the reasons why geography matters now more than ever - mirroring the theme of this year's GA Conference under the Presidency of Gill Miller.

Copies will be available from additional outlets soon including bookshops, online outlets, Book Depository and others.

I would suggest it would make a good book for a number of different groups of people:

- students - of different ages

- parents

- UCAS tutors / careers advisers

- geography teachers - both ECT and experienced teachers

- teacher educators - ITE colleagues from a number of different routes

Look out for lots of tweets with the hashtag #whystudygeography over the next week or so as we try to make as many people as possible aware of the book and its potential value for their work.

Also available on Wordery, Blackwells, Waterstones and as a Kindle or Kobo e-book version for convenience.