MY YORK U MAP

ROLE:

Creative Director, Photographer, and Illustrator

PROJECT OVERVIEW:

This is a personal hand-drawn map of York University, based on my personal experiences and memories from my undergraduate academic career. The map is made out of custom-cut plexiglass with black and white POSCA markers being used to make the detailed illustrations. The objective of the project is to create a personal map and place an installation project somewhere on campus, whilst also indicating where on the map.

I wanted to include my appreciation of the variety of architectural forms present on campus, which is found through the inclusion of specific buildings in my map. The play with transparency is for you to follow the map and align it with the actual structures as you go through the journey to where the installation is located.

For my installation piece, I often wanted to change the cold and dull aura emitted from the Brutalistic architecture commonly found around the structures of York University. The York University “secret but not so secret” underground tunnel system is my intended location due to its ominous atmosphere, despite it being commonly used amongst students who travel underground from building to building during winter seasons.

By continuing with the theme of transparency from my map, I decided to play around with the idea of placing gel filters on the underground tunnel lights, making the viewer seem like they are traveling through a rainbow. I wanted to change the atmosphere of the drab tunnels into something more colourful and inviting for the students to go through, amongst their arduous days. I used the same gel filter material that I used for my installation piece, as the indicator on my map for its location.