You Are Here Personal Geographies and Other Maps of the Imagination

Mapmaking fulfills one of our deepest desires: understanding the world around us and our place in it. But maps need not show just continents and oceans: there are maps to heaven and hell; to happiness and despair; maps of moods, matrimony, and mythological places. There are maps to popular culture, from Gulliver's Island to Gilligan's Island; speculative maps of the world before it was known; and maps to secret places known only to the mapmaker. Artists' maps show another kind of uncharted realm: the imagination. What all these maps have in common is their creators' willingness to venture beyond the boundaries of geography or convention. You Are Here is a wide-ranging collection of such superbly inventive maps. These are charts of places you are not expected to find, taking you on a voyage of the mind: an exploration of the ideal country estate from a dog's perspective; a guide to buried treasure; a trip down the road to success; or the imaginary world of an inmate of a mental institution. With over one hundred maps from artists, cartographers, and explorers, You Are Here gives the reader a breathtaking view of worlds, both real and imaginary. Who are we Though not a map collector of note, Katharine Harmon began squirreling away placemat maps during a ten-month trip around the United States in 1986. The trip resulted in a move with her future husband from New York to Seattle, where she lives today. Harmon was founding director of Northwest Bookfest, the region's literary festival, and is currently a principal of Tributary Books, a book development company that specializes in visual books about creativity in various forms. Maps combine Harmon's two passions, words and imagery, and she has long been intrigued by art that incorporates mapping. She looks forward to spending time completing a series of paintings of treasure maps that confer value upon inconsequential, everyday objects.Harmon, Katharine is the author of 'You Are Here Personal Geographies and Other Maps of the Imagination', published 2003 under ISBN 9781568984308 and ISBN 1568984308.