Lower Manhattan is the birthplace of our nation. Major events that shaped this country from Henry Hudson's arrival to the American Revolution to immigration, the Crash of 29 to September 11th to Superstorm Sandy have taken place here. Many firsts occurred downtown: the first synagogue in America, the first electrified building, the first subway. Kings College became Columbia and Gallatin founded NYU. Engineering marvels: Fultin's steamship, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Erie Canal, the first electrified building happened din Lower Manhattan. Memorials and plaques are everywhere attesting to its prominence in New York's cultural landscape. All the museums downtown are devoted to deeply exploring different aspects of its history.

In conjunction with the installation of Wall Drawing #599, the JCC will present Sol LeWitt: Shaping Ideas , an exhibition in The Laurie M. Tisch Gallery. A consideration of LeWitt's deep understanding of surface and depth, color and form, Sol LeWitt: Shaping Ideas includes drawings, prints, posters, photos, videos and an interactive map to put the JCC's Wall Drawing in context. cultureNOW has contributed a map illustrating Sol Lewitt's installations in Manhattan.

Much has been written about the culture and the cultural history of Los Angeles which has been amplified in our national theater of movies and television. Events that have happened here have gone on to have a far wider influence than might be thought possible at the time. Mapping is both the oldest and newest way of visually conveying complicated information and layering data at the same time. The confluence of architecture (the built environment), public art (the cultural insertions) and history (the events that happened in that specific location) in the public realm are the most significant components in describing the story of a city and its people in a manner that transcends pure documentation. The snapshot of Los Angeles that is possible in the era of Google Earth is a picture that can frame a dialogue about architecture and urbanism, ecosystems and resiliency, cultural assets and cultural history allowing multiple perspectives and mashups at the same time. With smartphone technology, it is possible to expand well beyond the gallery walls into the places themselves in Los Angeles and use the tools to begin to look at the archeology of the sites. This is a technology that is only in its infancy but it is developing rapidly. Beginning with about 550 of LA's most significant and interesting sites and over 100 podcasts, the exhibition both here and in the city outside is a work in progress. It is updated constantly.

Mapping controls our perception and impacts the way we understand our environment. In the past, the map itself was a precious object. Used by property owners to define boundaries, by the military to fight wars, by explorers for navigation, and by municipalities to fight fires - the map embodied an extraordinary investment of time and resources that gave the owner the power to shape the world. With technological advances like GIS, Google Maps and smart phone technology, the relationship between the map and its user changed dramatically. No longer a precious object, new maps are generated constantly and instantaneously. Access has been expanded from several hundred to millions. Even the ownership and creation of maps has shifted toward the user with the advent of customization and consumer input. This new technology marks a fundamental shift not only in the map as object but also in its power to influence perception.

The Center for Architecture, 536 La Guardia Place, New York City, NY
July-August 2011

In celebration of the 200th anniversary of the Manhattan Grid, Mapping the Cityscape focuses on the ways in which mapping influences our perception of the environment. Historically, cartographers created maps to document the built environment to ease navigation and ensure the safety of both city dwellers and travelers. With developments in desktop publishing, mapmakers were empowered with tools to create diagrammatic and interpretive maps that conv
eyed more layers of information. Maps began to move beyond the pure documentation of our surroundings to a more holistic understanding of place.