The Daily Render by Nikolas R. Schiller » Illinois

2008 Urban America Calendar

Nikolas Schiller — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 15:43:11 +0000

Below are the months of the calendar featuring cities around the United States and links to their respective entries so that you can see the map’s full size. Read more about the other calendars here.

Cover

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Click here to view the 2008 California Calendar

A Wrinkle in Chicago

Nikolas Schiller — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 17:05:41 +0000

: rendered at 18,000 X 12,000 :

This map was made in homage of Madeleine L’Engle, who recently passed away. Her use of the word “tesseract” in a Wrinkle in Time had a epistemological effect on my curiosity for the science. This map was designed using two projections of downtown Chicago (including the Sears Tower). On the right is the Diamond projection and on the left is the Square projection. Of note is that its one of the few quilt projection maps that has visible lines of non-symmetry. Anyways, some day in the future I’d like to map the neighborhoods of Chicago. I think it would be a fun series to explore.

View the Google Map of downtown Chicago, Illinois.

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Related Miscellaneous Maps:

Related Illinois Maps:

A periodic shift in Polar Roses for Valentines Day

Nikolas Schiller — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 11:28:07 +0000

Original Process:

Shifted to the right (or left)

Zoom of Grant Park Quilt

Last month I thoroughly explored the applications of geometric tessellations using the polar coordinate filter. After doing a bit more research I discovered how similar these “amazing circles” appear to be very similar to the sinusoidal curves of a Polar Rose. They use the equation:

In the original process I used to construct last month’s Polar Roses each interation added one tile to the entire panorama. I believe this represents the a in the equation. And after each iteration, there would be a new pedal added.

Today’s discovery is the realization of how these panoramas are wrapped around a cylinder to produce the pedals when the polar coordinate system is used. I’ve been working in whole numbers only, yet if the tiles are wrapped in a cylindrically fashion using a half shift, there will be a change in the pedal’s layout.

So to create this shift, half of one tile is removed on each end (notice above), and when they connect after being wrapped around a cylinder they still form a perfect tessellation and thus new pedal configuration when the filter is applied.

The result of this polar shift is quite interesting- a 90 degree rotation for each iteration.

View the 90 degree difference:
Old:

Shifted 90 degrees:

I can now apply this periodic shift to each of the geometries to produce a completely new set of Polar Roses. This should be interesting.

Temporal Stereography of Schiller Park, Illinois

Nikolas Schiller — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 20:47:03 +0000

Tessellations of Time
Schiller Park Quilt 2002 || Schiller Park Quilt 2005

Some locations around the United States have high-resolution, color, aerial photography available from two specific periods of time, some entire states have none. Washington, DC has imagery of 2002 and 2005, however the 2005 imagery has not been released to public (I’m still waiting to see if NO WAR shows up on my roof!). All of my DC maps use the Feb 2002 imagery. Google currently uses imagery of Washington, DC that was taken probably in March or April of 2002 because the Mandarin Oriental Hotel is still semi-completed in both sets of imagery.

Chicago, on the other hand, also has available imagery taken in April of 2002 and April of 2005. So I obtained both years for the Village of Schiller Park, Illinois, which is located right outside of Chicago’s O’Hare airport. When preparing the imagery I made sure that they were identical tessellations, differing only in acquisition date. I attempted to match the tone as best as I could.

The idea behind this process was that when printed and hung next to each other, they would create a rudimentary stereoscopic projection that would look largely similar, but with temporal artifacts showing change in the built environment.

The one regret is rendering the maps at 9K x 6K instead of the normal 18K x 12K, I would have captured more detail from the source aerial photography. But aside from that, I am going to make more of these temporal diptychs when the imagery is available. I think it’s a unique method of showing time, space, place, and symmetry.

Ironically, even though both sets of imagery present Schiller Park in the recent past, those of you in Chicago are technically seeing the future, because Google will most likely update their servers with the same imagery I’m using. So in reality, you are looking at a map of the future!

Left = 2002 || Right = 2005

Look closely and watch time bend.

Temporal Diptych of Schiller Park, Illinois – 2005

Nikolas Schiller — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 18:40:02 +0000

: rendered at 9,000 X 6,000 :

This imagery of 2005 is not yet on Google Maps or Windows Live Local… hence seeing it here first is kinda like seeing what will be seen in the future, while actually seeing an interpretation of the recent past. Time is relative anyways.

View the Temporal Diptych of Schiller Park, Illinois – 2002
View side by side as Stereographic Projection

View the Google Map of the Village of Schiller Park near Chicago, IL.

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Temporal Diptych of Schiller Park, Illinois – 2002

Nikolas Schiller — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 03:08:44 +0000

: rendered at 9,000 X 6,000 :

View the Temporal Diptych of Schiller Park, Illinois – 2005
View side by side as Stereographic Projection

View the Google Map of the Village of Schiller Park near Chicago, IL.

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Icositetragon of Northwestern Station in Chicago

Nikolas Schiller — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 15:28:52 +0000

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Yeah that’s right, an Icositetragon. It’s 24 sided polygon. I’ve made a few of these before, but never really got around to finding the actual name given to these polygons.

Originally titled “Sears Tower Quilt” when I started making it, I realized that the Citicorp Center created an interesting artifact in it’s reflection, so I went with it- 24 times to be exact. It creates the white “circle” in the center. However, in the process of making the polygon, the Sears Tower was pushed out of the frame and I opted to name it Northwestern Station Quilt. I’ve chosen to not use corporate naming convention (aka “Citicorp Center Quilt”) because over time the name will change (if the building is sold or comes under new management), and I’m betting the colloquial naming will last longer.

View the Google Map of the area around Northwest Station in Chicago, IL.

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Grant Park Quilt

Nikolas Schiller — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 07:47:55 +0000

: rendered at 18,000 X 12,000 :

View the Google Map of Grant Park in Chicago.

I think it’s the eruption of Buckingham Fountain from “Married with Children’s” opening sequence that does it for me. While I chose to name it Grant Park, I thought of calling it Millennium Park Quilt, which after looking at Google Map’s current imagery, I beat Google to the next Millennium, or at least to the Park by April of 2005 (my imagery’s acquisition date). Because of this, I am humbled to say I symmetrically remixed Frank Gehry‘s Pritzker Pavilion- in Google’s the current imagery the pavilion is still under construction…check the details…

I would have a second one, but due to a power outage, Grant Park Quilt #2 was offered to the gods of electricity as a humble sacrifice. I spent the day reading. Up next will be a fractal of this park.

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Chicago Quilt #3

Nikolas Schiller — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 13:34:04 +0000

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Chicago Quilt #2

Nikolas Schiller — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 13:31:16 +0000

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Chicago Quilt

Nikolas Schiller — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 14:04:19 +0000

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So I’ve finally got around to making some maps of Chicago. I’ve had this imagery sitting on my computer for almost a year now, but I just never got around to tessellating it. I chose this location of downtown Chicago (view google map) because it is where the AAG’s Annual Meeting is going to take place next month.

Ideally, I’d like to have one of these printed out and maybe given away in a raffle similar to last year. Anyways, I am making a few different maps of Chicago. I have #2 finished rendering and #3 is in the pipeline. Tonight I will prepare both of them for tomorrow. I think it might be a good idea to snag some other imagery of Chicago to make my coverage of the city slightly better.

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Experiments with Territories: Post Cartographic Map Design II

Nikolas Schiller — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 04:09:54 +0000

This session will take place at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago, Illinois on March 8th, 2006

I added links to abstracts and the author’s websites below.

Paper Session: 2231

Experiments with Territories: Post Cartographic Map Design II

is scheduled on Wednesday, 3/8/06, from 10:00 AM – 11:40 AM

Organizer(s): John Krygier – Ohio Wesleyan University

Chair(s): John Krygier – Ohio Wesleyan University

Abstract(s): 10:00 AM Author(s): John Pickles – University Of North Carolina

Abstract Title: Delete the Border! Activist Art Movements, New Mapping Projects, and the Reworking of the Euro-Border

10:20 AM Author(s): Nikolas R. Schiller – Association of American Geographers

Abstract Title: Geographic Tessellations: Maps, Methods, and Mandalas

10:40 AM Author(s): Chris Perkins – University of Manchester

Abstract Title: Playing with maps

11:00 AM Author(s): kanarinka – The Institute for Infinitely Small Things

Abstract Title: Designing for the Totally Inconceivable: Mods, hacks and other unexpected uses of maps

11:20 AM Discussant: John Pickles – University Of North Carolina

Discussant(s): John Pickles – University Of North Carolina

Session Description: This session includes researchers and practitioners creating maps and working with models of map design outside of the traditional empirical model that dominated cartographic design research in the latter half of the 20th century: people who think critically about maps and map design and engage in actual map design and construction based on their ideas. Many artists have embraced the map in such a manner. “Map artists … claim the power of the map to achieve ends other than the social reproduction of the status quo. Map artists do not reject maps. They reject the authority claimed by normative maps uniquely to portray reality as it is, that is, with dispassion and objectivity…” (Wood & Krygier, 2006). Map artist kanarinka claims artists working with maps have an “ethics of experimentation” that is “anything but arbitrary.” “…artists experiment with a particular territory in specific ways to reach unforseen destinations.” (kanarinka, 2006). Other models of map design include narrative and ambiguity, suggested by literary and film theory, multiple mappings (or counter-mappings) suggested by humanistic and critical theory, indigenous mapping methods, and political mapping informed by post-structuralist theory focused on the complexities of power. Post-cartographic map design research and mapping seeks to expand the way we think about, design, and create maps in our map immersed society.