Chazen exhibit examines art and cartography

March 7th 2014 Simon Kuran
Arts & Humanities
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The subject of one exhibit at the Chazen Museum of Art is marginal. Literally.

"Marginalia" was coined in the early 19th century to mean the notes, scribbles, and doodles that readers have added to the margins of books and manuscripts since antiquity.

Marginalia in cARTography, which runs through May 18, explores the images on the margins of maps dating from the 13th century through the 1960s.

The exhibit includes nearly 50 maps drawn from 13 libraries across the country, including UW–Madison’s Department of Special Collections and the Robinson Map Library.

This exhibition explores the visual discourse between marginal artistic images — sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant — and the maps where they appear.

The marginalia sheds light on the content and purpose of the maps, their authors and patrons, and on the historical period when they were made. The exhibition also explores cartography as an art form, with a focus on the representations in the map margins.

Marginalia in cARTography is guest curated by Sandra Sáenz-López Pérez, an art historian who specializes in the iconographical analysis of maps and the artistic interest of historical cartography.

Generous support for this exhibition has been provided by the Chazen Museum of Art Council and the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the state of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Story by University Communications