Dr Luisa Gandolfo will give a talk at the University of Edinburgh as part of the Decolonising the Curriculum in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies seminar series, on January 30.
During her talk, entitled 'Political Cartography and the Dynamic Archive', Luisa will consider how we use countermaps as pedagogical and research tools, and the possibility for countermaps to be used to resist erasure and facilitate memory in Palestine-Israel.
Focusing on Palestinian countermaps, Luisa will discuss the possibility for sites, narratives, and historical events erased from mainstream online mapping tools to be reinserted and Palestinian voices recentered.
The dynamism of the map is not only reshaping: it’s obliterating
In particular, she will look at the mapping apps Palestine Online Maps and Jerusalem, We Are Here, which combine archival maps with contemporary satellite imagery, interviews, and archive photography to provide an insight into the impact of settler-colonialism on the region.
The talk builds on a forthcoming paper, 'Utopian Cartography and Political Imagination in Palestine-Israel', which examines the potential for art maps, by Palestinian artists, to engage in memory work.
The talk closes with a reflection on the future role of countermaps as conduits of remembrance, memorialisation, and a counterpoint to the use of maps as a tool of war.
The talk will be held online and in person, on January 30 at 13:00. For further information, visit the event page, here.