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Brawer Exhibit Opens at Finlandia

An opening reception was held for designer Wendy Brawer at the Finnish American Heritage Center in Hancock, Michigan. The reception marked the opening of the designer’s exhibit “Green Maps of the World”.

 
In addition to the many national and international maps on display there was an interactive display featuring the Keweenaw’s green map that has been two years in the making. At the exhibit there is a board where visitors can add green locations to the map as well as other suggestions for the project.

The Keweenaw Green Map was initiated by the Sustainable Keweenaw Resource Center (SKRC), Hancock, with support from Finlandia University. The Center can be found at Finlandia’s Jutila Campus. The Keweenaw Green Map is an online map charting local businesses, projects, happenings, and other sites that play a part in sustainable community development.
Rick Loduha, Finlandia University associate professor of Interdisciplinary Design, became acquainted with Brawer in 1993 at an Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) conference. Loduha also spoke to the audience attending the reception.
“We were both speaking on sustainable design, but she packed the house,” Loduha recalls. “At the time, she was working on the Green Apple Map for New York City, the precursor to the now globally-accepted International Green Map System. We are very excited that Wendy has made time to visit the U.P.”
Brawer’s Green Apple Map sparked a revolution in the way cities are mapped. The Green Apple Map charts the environmentally and culturally significant places in New York City.
Three years later, in 1995, Brawer launched the Green Map System (GMS), a universally shared visual language of icons and programs for both city-wide and youth mapmakers.

The Finlandia exhibit introduces visitors to the worldwide green mapping that is taking place, both in major population centers and in rural areas everywhere.
On display along with the maps is a large display of “Green Map Icons”. The icons are continuously being updated and suggestions on new ones are entertained and encourage. The project is and will likely always be a work in progress.

A visit to the exhibit will enlighten most people if not everyone.

“Green Maps of the World: Charting a Sustainable Future” is on display at the Finlandia University Gallery through October 16.