Where do we live? What shape are
those places? How do they look on paper?
On
the
13th,
I spent two hours at the Old Abbey Taphouse, having conversations
about Hulme past and present. We
chatted, drank tea and coffee, and doodled maps. Every time I have a
conversation about Hulme I find myself learning something new – one
standout from this Sunday was Abbey Pond, which housed newts until
nearby development in 1994 (in ignorance of protests) filled it in as
part of building the Science Park next door. A blog post about ‘The
Republic of Newtonia’ gives a bit more info in my recent reading
list, below.
I’ve
also been trying a little drawing exercise with people I’m chatting
with, inviting them to draw a map of somewhere they have lived, then
draw a picture of the place in question on top. One of the results is
pictured, above. What’s the difference between a drawing and a map?
Does the drawing get in the way of the map, or the map in the way of
the drawing? Or
maybe they muddle each other, and create something greater than the
sum of its parts. I’ll keep playing with this invitation, and keep
asking myself these questions. |