Cartographic Expeditions and Visual Culture in the Nineteenth-Century Americas

During the nineteenth century, expeditionary mapping and visual culture across the Americas exploded, producing vast troves of visual and artistic material. This book explores the intersection of measurement, aesthetics, technology, sociopolitical power, and public tastes, examining the commonalities and distinctions in mapping strategies between North and South America. It represents the first transnational and hemispheric analysis of nineteenth-century cartographic aesthetics.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 250 pages
Publication date: 01 August 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

During the nineteenth century, the proliferation of gridding, graphing, and surveying reached unprecedented heights as nations and empires ventured into uncharted territories. While these expeditions were initially driven by the need to justify territorial claims and gather scientific data, they also yielded an abundance of visual and artistic material. This book delves into the explosion of expeditionary mapping and its profound connections to visual culture across the Americas. It argues that acts of measurement are inherently aesthetic, intersecting with new technologies, sociopolitical power dynamics, and shifting public tastes and consumption practices.

Several key questions guide this examination: What forms of nineteenth-century visual practices and technologies of seeing did these materials engage? How does scientific knowledge translate into visual representations and reach the public? What are the similarities and differences in mapping strategies between North and South America? How does the constitution of expeditionary lines reshape space and the natural landscape itself?

This volume represents the first transnational and hemispheric analysis of nineteenth-century cartographic aesthetics, drawing upon the expertise of historians, geographers, and art historians. It offers a multi-disciplinary perspective, shedding light on the complex interplay between cartography, visual culture, and the broader historical context of the nineteenth century.

Weight: 500g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367350260