Copenhagen map as a series of circles

Archie Archambault’s idea came from getting lost in the city of Portland, USA as a philosophy student, according to an article in Slate.

Google maps didn’t give him the sense of a ‘neighborhood’, or how to navigate the city.

“I was super absorbed in the GPS,” he told Slate. “But a Google map has a scientific feel. I wanted to communicate the idea of a city on paper,” he said.

The neighbourhood of Frederiksberg in Copenhagen as seen by Archie Archambault /Archies Press

So he started drawing circles and quadrants and exploring streets to get an on-the-ground feel to the urban landscape. He drafted Copenhagen and other cities too, and teamed up with a Copenhagener Mette. On advice from Kay Xander Mellish he put in the University of Copenhagen campuses too.

The City Centre of Copenhagen as visualised by Archie Archambault / courtesy of Archie Archambault /Archies Press

So what’s with all the circles?
According to Archie Archambault new research indicates that GPS’s are hindering our ability to create mental maps of our surroundings.

“My maps aim to install a ‘Map from the Mind’, simplifying structures and neighborhoods in the most efficient and beautiful way. The circle, our Universe’s softest shape, is the clearest graphic to convey size and connection,” he says.

The entire Copenhagen in circles image, courtesy of Archie Archambault /Archies Press

You can purchase the full prints of Copenhagen and learn more about the project on Archie’s website.

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