The six texts below are references gathered during the Positions Through Contextualising brief.
The extended critical analyses of two of these references are on pages 7 and 8 of the annotated bibliography PDF at the end of this post.
Inefficient Mapping: a Protocol for Attuning to Phenomena
The author presents mapping as a sensorial activity capable of capturing specific states of complex and mutable environments, resulting in abstract maps.
Although inspired by this philosophy, I did also use the conventional tracing method of representing a path, but by doing it by hand, by shifting my gaze between my subject and my medium, and sometimes operating simultaneously in observation and drawing modes, I implemented imprecision and subjectivity to the process. Furthermore, layering the maps and the printed picture of Granary Square brings the chaos and temporal dimension present in inefficient mapping methods.
This form of presentation expands the single-path map and allows for multiple meanings and interpretations.
Inefficiency is an honest label that recognises from the start the limitations of research. My mapping method during this brief has been extremely limited and subjective. By sitting in different spots at Granary Square, I had to constantly make choices about which direction to look and where to sit. As Knight (2021, p. 75) put it, “Researchers become political once they see themselves as a modest witness to the world, and that they can only partially record what can be seen, and that what is seen is only ever a partial account of the whole thing.”
Reference List
Knight, L. (2021) Inefficient Mapping: A Protocol for Attuning to Phenomena. 1st edn. California: Punctum Books.
Community Riders
I’m inspired by the iterative, experimental, hands-on approach Consuegra (2025) brings to his projects and the use of contextually relevant visual elements. Furthermore, he shows not only finished designs, but also experiments while openly admitting not knowing what they mean. That poses a relevant question to graphic communication designers: should a body of work be composed only of key projects? Or also include everything in between that has led to them?
When I found the project “Community Riders”, I was drawn in by the subject, due to my interest in the broader thematics of labour, and by the method, so I experimented with the same virtual photography on my early iterations. Even bringing in more information like cost of gear and hourly pay, it still felt too distant of an approach to study delivery riders, with whom most customers’ interactions are already mediated by the mini computer that is the smartphone.
Reference List
Consuegra, J. (2025) ‘Community riders’ [Instagram]. 22 February. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/DGYoUHmRTzO/ (Accessed: 22 May 2025).
Charing Cross
By incorporating art from homeless people, Norman’s book presents a rich and plural narrative about and by this marginalised societal group that motivates me to include more voices from delivery riders in my work.
The glossary that structures the book offers a selection of ideas, and it is a way to frame the subject and articulate the author’s position. This collection makes me imagine concepts or symbols that could be relevant to my research, and how to communicate them. Perhaps reveal to a larger audience something that every rider has to go through in order to work, like creating an account or hiring insurance. This could take the form of a user guide or an instructional video, and use a serious or humorous tone.
Reference List
Norman, N. (2008) Charing Cross. 1st edn. Koenig Books: London.
Michael Wolf
So far I’ve used photography in a mere functional way, as a backdrop for my maps or to illustrate my geographical point of view when I was drawing them.
My critique during this brief lies in social issues like the precarious conditions faced by workers under platform capitalism, the over dependence on digital services and the impact they have on local business and communities.
Wolf (2010) used Google Street View as source material, and was possibly an inspiration for Consuegra (2025), but photography offers many more possibilities to investigate these themes. Wolf’s (2009) Life in Cities series exposes the harsh conditions endured by everyday people in urban life. They are reminders of what can be achieved through this medium and, in my case, in combination with personal narrative and counter-mapping methods.
Reference List
Consuegra, J. (2025) ‘Community riders’ [Instagram]. 22 February. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/DGYoUHmRTzO/ (Accessed: 22 May 2025).
Wolf, M. (2009) Life in Cities. Available at: https://photomichaelwolf.com/#100×100-2/1 (Accessed: 22 May 2025).
Wolf, M. (2010) Street View. Available at: https://photomichaelwolf.com/#asoue/1 (Accessed: 23 May 2025).
Theory of The Dérive
After seeing Consuegra’s (2025) work, I decided to investigate how mapping could reveal information about the work of delivery riders. The Theory of the Dérive could offer some insight on ways to explore this topic in the real world, as opposed to the virtual environment used in my reference. After reading the text, I became much more aware of the presence of these workers, as if I was in a constant state of an informal-dérive. One day cycling to campus, I caught myself behind one delivery rider and took photos and filmed him. This event gave me the idea to cycle around, covering a specific area or more freely, in search of them and capture more footage.
I didn’t test this method out, since sitting on Granary Square and registering the routes on tracing paper seemed more promising. This approach is similar to what Guy Debord describes in Knabb (2006, p. 65) as “being a static-dérive.”
Reference List
Consuegra, J. (2025) ‘Community riders’ [Instagram]. 22 February. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/DGYoUHmRTzO/ (Accessed: 22 May 2025).
Knabb, K. (ed.) (2006) Situationist International Anthology. 4th edn. Bureau of Public Secrets: Berkeley.
The Street
Like Debord’s dérive in Knabb (2006), Perec’s method of investigating is based on discovering new information by comprehensive observation of space, architecture and behaviour, but in a more static way, much like my own exploration during this brief.
Unlike noted in both theories, I had a predetermined subject. I would notice details other than their routes, like the brand stamped on their large backpacks, if they were on a cycle or a motorbike and some behavioural traits. Are they in a hurry? Or lost? I always noticed the direction they were going, but only started putting it on paper midway into the exercise.
I see two ways of expanding my work through Perec’s lens. I could reflect in retrospect on the material I have, including some pictures. Or I can go back, observe and annotate other aspects of each worker, like what they are wearing or if they changed gears. Or I could sit outside Granary Square and closer to where the majority of drivers were going in order to see where they might ride next.
Another way to expand on my work is perhaps to more thoroughly observe the surroundings. Can they reveal new information relevant to my theme? For instance, how many restaurants are there at Granary Square and why didn’t I see any delivery riders coming from any of them?
Reference List
Perec, G. (1997) Species of Spaces and Other Pieces. 1st edn. Penguin Books: London.
Knabb, K. (ed.) (2006) Situationist International Anthology. 4th edn. Bureau of Public Secrets: Berkeley.