Denis Wood
Encyclopedia
Denis Wood is an artist, author, cartographer and a former professor of Design
at North Carolina State University
. Born in 1945, Wood grew up in Cleveland, Ohio
, receiving a BA in English (in 1967) from then Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve University
). He received an MA (in 1971) and a PhD (in 1973) in geography from Clark University
, in Worcester, Massachusetts
. Wood taught environmental psychology
, landscape history
, and design in then School of Design (now College of Design) at North Carolina State University from 1974 through 1996, living and raising his family in Boylan Heights
. Beginning in 1996, Wood spent over two years in prison on a conviction for molesting a teenage boy.
Wood’s consistent critique “of the ideals of modern academic cartographers and of modern cartographic ideology” has been wide ranging, informed, and decisive. In 2004, John Pickles
, Early N. Phillips Distinguished professor at the University of North Carolina
summed up Wood’s contributions this way: “For over twenty-five years, Denis Wood has been provoking us to think differently and critically about maps and map use.” The book was first issued in 1992 as a catalogue accompanying a major exhibition called The Power of Maps at the Cooper-Hewitt National Museum of Design in New York. That show was later remounted at the Smithsonian Institution
in Washington in 1994. These exhibitions were the graphic genesis of the 1992 book which has been the subject of both scholarly commentary and popular interest.
As opposed to those who insist maps “represent” reality the critical cartographers, led by Wood, have insisted maps represent nothing. Instead, they present an argument about the world through the careful choice of content arranged graphically at a specific scale. This thesis, and the mechanisms of its activation, is at the heart of Wood and John Fel’s 2008 University of Chicago Press
publication, The Natures of Maps. As one reviewer put it: “In 1986 Wood and Fels took apart the map; describing ten codes through which its signs create meaning. Their argument was subsequently enfolded into Wood’s The Power of Maps …Twenty-one years later, Wood and Fels have put the map back together again ‘by replacing the whole idea of the map as a representation with that of the map as a system of propositions.’” “The map is not a picture,” Wood and Fels insist in this new book, “It is an argument … everything about a map, from top to bottom, is an argument.”
This idea of the map as an argument presented rather than a reality represented extends a more general thesis on the manner in which we “construct” the world through a range of socially-conditioned perspectives, and do so at various scales. A relevant but quite distinct title in this area of work is Wood’s 2004 volume, Five Billion Years of Global Change: A History of the Land.
" (viz. fellatio
) and "taking indecent liberties with a minor", on more than one-hundred and thirty occasions.
From 1996-1998, he spent 26 months in the North Carolina penal system as a result of his conviction. He is not on any national or regional register of sex offenders and has spoken publicly about his incarceration and the charges that led to it.
Some have used Wood’s incarceration as a means of attacking Wood rather than addressing the content of his writing and work. The geographer Jane Jacobs
has wondered in press whether Wood’s arrest and incarceration may be one reason why some of his work receives less attention than it deserves. Despite the conviction, his writing and work continued and since his release he has continued to live in Raleigh, NC, while lecturing and working internationally in his field. For example, in 2008 he presented a plenary at the Royal Geographical Society
in London
.
In a 1998 interview with the News and Observer, Wood announced plans for a book based on his prison experience. It was described as planned for publication by the Johns Hopkins University Press
. The book is currently scheduled for publication by The Center for American Places, distributed by University of Chicago Press. Wood offered a presentation with the same title at the 2003 annual meeting of the American Public Health Association
.
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
at North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
. Born in 1945, Wood grew up in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, receiving a BA in English (in 1967) from then Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
). He received an MA (in 1971) and a PhD (in 1973) in geography from Clark University
Clark University
Clark University is a private research university and liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.Founded in 1887, it is the oldest educational institution founded as an all-graduate university. Clark now also educates undergraduates...
, in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
. Wood taught environmental psychology
Environmental psychology
Environmental psychology is an interdisciplinary field focused on the interplay between humans and their surroundings. The field defines the term environment broadly, encompassing natural environments, social settings, built environments, learning environments, and informational environments...
, landscape history
Landscape history
Landscape history is the study of the way in which humanity has changed the physical appearance of the environment - both present and past. It is sometimes referred to as landscape archaeology...
, and design in then School of Design (now College of Design) at North Carolina State University from 1974 through 1996, living and raising his family in Boylan Heights
Boylan Heights (Raleigh, North Carolina)
Boylan Heights is a historic neighborhood in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district on July 29, 1985...
. Beginning in 1996, Wood spent over two years in prison on a conviction for molesting a teenage boy.
Academic career
Wood is perhaps best known for his book The Power of Maps (1992). Considered radical when published, The Power of Maps has been a linchpin of the “new cartographies” in which maps are redefined as socially constructed arguments based upon consistent semiotic codes.Wood’s consistent critique “of the ideals of modern academic cartographers and of modern cartographic ideology” has been wide ranging, informed, and decisive. In 2004, John Pickles
John Pickles
John Pickles currently serves as the Phillips Distinguished Professor of International Studies and Chair of the Department of Geography at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Pickles attended the University of Oxford, where he obtained a Bachelor's degree in Geography, with a minor in...
, Early N. Phillips Distinguished professor at the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
summed up Wood’s contributions this way: “For over twenty-five years, Denis Wood has been provoking us to think differently and critically about maps and map use.” The book was first issued in 1992 as a catalogue accompanying a major exhibition called The Power of Maps at the Cooper-Hewitt National Museum of Design in New York. That show was later remounted at the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
in Washington in 1994. These exhibitions were the graphic genesis of the 1992 book which has been the subject of both scholarly commentary and popular interest.
As opposed to those who insist maps “represent” reality the critical cartographers, led by Wood, have insisted maps represent nothing. Instead, they present an argument about the world through the careful choice of content arranged graphically at a specific scale. This thesis, and the mechanisms of its activation, is at the heart of Wood and John Fel’s 2008 University of Chicago Press
University of Chicago Press
The University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including The Chicago Manual of Style, dozens of academic journals, including Critical Inquiry, and a wide array of...
publication, The Natures of Maps. As one reviewer put it: “In 1986 Wood and Fels took apart the map; describing ten codes through which its signs create meaning. Their argument was subsequently enfolded into Wood’s The Power of Maps …Twenty-one years later, Wood and Fels have put the map back together again ‘by replacing the whole idea of the map as a representation with that of the map as a system of propositions.’” “The map is not a picture,” Wood and Fels insist in this new book, “It is an argument … everything about a map, from top to bottom, is an argument.”
This idea of the map as an argument presented rather than a reality represented extends a more general thesis on the manner in which we “construct” the world through a range of socially-conditioned perspectives, and do so at various scales. A relevant but quite distinct title in this area of work is Wood’s 2004 volume, Five Billion Years of Global Change: A History of the Land.
Cartographic art
More recently, Wood has joined his expertise in cartography with his interest in art and art history. A collage artist and painter, he has created in recent years a bibliography and history of cartographic art , work that from the Dadaist to the present have used maps as a medium for the exposition of cultural and political ideas and ideals. Again, the general thesis is the same as in Wood’s other work: images—whether map, art, or artful maps—present a thesis through selection of subject matter self-consciously arranged through a medium’s tools of exposition.Conviction
In April 1996, Wood pleaded guilty to "crimes against natureCrimes Against Nature
Crimes Against Nature : How George W. Bush and His Corporate Pals Are Plundering the Country and Hijacking Our Democracy is a book written in 2004 by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr....
" (viz. fellatio
Fellatio
Fellatio is an act of oral stimulation of a male's penis by a sexual partner. It involves the stimulation of the penis by the use of the mouth, tongue, or throat. The person who performs fellatio can be referred to as the giving partner, and the other person is the receiving partner...
) and "taking indecent liberties with a minor", on more than one-hundred and thirty occasions.
From 1996-1998, he spent 26 months in the North Carolina penal system as a result of his conviction. He is not on any national or regional register of sex offenders and has spoken publicly about his incarceration and the charges that led to it.
Some have used Wood’s incarceration as a means of attacking Wood rather than addressing the content of his writing and work. The geographer Jane Jacobs
Jane Jacobs
Jane Jacobs, was an American-Canadian writer and activist with primary interest in communities and urban planning and decay. She is best known for The Death and Life of Great American Cities , a powerful critique of the urban renewal policies of the 1950s in the United States...
has wondered in press whether Wood’s arrest and incarceration may be one reason why some of his work receives less attention than it deserves. Despite the conviction, his writing and work continued and since his release he has continued to live in Raleigh, NC, while lecturing and working internationally in his field. For example, in 2008 he presented a plenary at the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
In a 1998 interview with the News and Observer, Wood announced plans for a book based on his prison experience. It was described as planned for publication by the Johns Hopkins University Press
Johns Hopkins University Press
The Johns Hopkins University Press is the publishing division of the Johns Hopkins University. It was founded in 1878 and holds the distinction of being the oldest continuously running university press in the United States. The Press publishes books, journals, and electronic databases...
. The book is currently scheduled for publication by The Center for American Places, distributed by University of Chicago Press. Wood offered a presentation with the same title at the 2003 annual meeting of the American Public Health Association
American Public Health Association
The American Public Health Association is Washington, D.C.-based professional organization for public health professionals in the United States. Founded in 1872 by Dr. Stephen Smith, APHA has more than 30,000 members worldwide...
.
Publications
Wood has published several scholarly articles and books. His books include:- The Power of Maps with John Fels - 1992
- Home Rules with Robert Beck - 1994
- Seeing through Maps with Ward Kaiser - 2001, and a second edition in 2006
- Five Billion Years of Change: A History of the LandFive Billion Years of Change: A History of the LandFive Billion Years of Change: A History of the Land is a book by Denis Wood that attempts a holistic view of reality that ranges from the Big Bang to the World Wide Web...
- 2004 - Making Maps with John Krygier - 2005
- The Natures of Maps with John Fels -2008
- DENIS WOOD: EVERYTHING SINGS with Ira Glass,Siglio, 2011. ISBN 9780979956249
External links
- Interview with Denis Wood on This American Life
- Lecture by Denis Wood on map art
- Denis Wood on Shadowed Spaces Tour
- Denis Wood's Boylan Heights Atlas
- Denis Wood at ODT Maps
- Denis Wood's books on Amazon
- Books and scholarly papers by Denis Wood listed on Google Scholar
- Denis Wood's website
- Illustrated bibliography: Denis Wood