Overview
Maps can be more than functional tools. They can be works of art, expressions of local pride, tools of indoctrination, propaganda and much more. Magnificent Maps brought together 80 of the largest, most impressive and beautiful maps ever made, from 200 AD to the present day. Read more
The marketing brief identified the need to convey the scale and grandeur of the maps, supporting a desire to appeal to a broader, younger audience. The solution features a member of the public stood, enchanted, before one of the exhibition’s finest maps, the Fra Mauro World Map made in 1804. The figure lends the image a sense of scale and facilitated the use of several different models across the marketing campaign, appealing to the required range of target audiences.
Developed in collaboration with architectural practice Universal Design Studio, the exhibition’s design responded to the curatorial concept – a series of themed rooms providing context for the exhibits. From a gallery through to a schoolroom, each room was designed to tell the story of the featured maps. Graphic thresholds were designed to act as architectural transitions between rooms and created a constant graphic zone to help set the context of each room. This solution was further developed utilizing stretched canvas frames throughout to create walls and partitions, thus allowing the direct integration of context images.
The exhibition ran from June – September 2010 and attracted over 225,000 visitors making it the most popular exhibition ever staged at the British Library. Close
