A new incursion of The Void has occurred in Penfold, a thriving city of some 103,000 people in the parish of The Plains. The incident happened in the center of the city taking with it an estimated 7,400 residents and the second of the city's two railway stations. Leadership of the town has petitioned the Central Government to provide Void Defense walls to protect the remaining Penfoldians. In the meantime a new residential area, New Penfold, has been erected northeast of the existing city and will house people displaced from the central district.
It makes you wonder if walls can even be erected in time, or maybe the Central Government's best bet is to just wall off the whole city..
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ReplyDeleteMy sense is that the walls will not be built in time. If they do get completed and the city is isolated The Void will eradicate everything within the walls. The Void may establish a city of its own there.
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DeleteThat won't happen, Parker. It's a nice thought, but The Void exists in another dimension separate from The Map itself. There is no communication between the two.
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ReplyDeleteHello Mr. Gretzinger! I just saw the short documentary about you and your map. I wanted to send my compliments. I think the project is exciting, and artistically very significant. I'm glad the internet has allowed you to find a larger audience.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, I found you through Reddit.com, and they have a very popular feature called "Ask me Anything" (or "Ask me Almost Anything" if you prefer). If you'd be interested in spending an hour or two answering questions, I bet you would find a large and interested audience. I'm going to go back and read through the rest of your blog.
All best,
Sam
Incidentally, are guest artist panels still part of your process? I'd be quite interested in contributing one to the backlog. Just bought a print on eBay!
ReplyDeleteHi Sam! thanks so much for your encouragement, praise, and support! And thanks, too, for your purchase on eBay. The sales help keep me in supplies, and I really appreciate them.
DeleteIt might be fun to do an "Ask Me Anything"! How do I set that up?
And, yes, I always accept guest panels. Any 2-D artwork will do, especially if it's already 8 by 10 inches. It's all done with the understanding that I will re-work your art to meld with the rest of the Map and that I will copy your work onto label paper to be collaged throughout the body of the Map. OK? I can return the original work if you wish.
Found this blog from the short posted on Vimeo. Simply awesome stuff, sir.
ReplyDeleteThis really reminds me of a tabletop RPG. Open-ended rules guiding the creation of a world. The difference here, though, is that the rules are yours.
ReplyDeleteHi there!
ReplyDeleteThis is an really cool project, but i don't understand everything, you are doing. So i just wanted to ask you...
How are you doing this? Is this one map you extend the whole time with more citys and new ideas like the void and stuff? Or are you just make an city till you think it is done, and then start with a new sheet of paper?
Would be nice if you answer me :). I hope you understand my bad english...
First, your English is fine! Thanks for taking the time to write.
DeleteSecond: The Map is continually evolving and growing. I make copies of panels, save the original, and start to re-work the copy, adding roads, expanding cities, creating new facilities like rail stations, airports, commercial blocks. So, nothing is ever finished.
I hope that you will keep watching the progress!
Thanks for the answer! This is really impressive and yes, i come over here every now and then ;)
DeleteDo you think the Central Government may ever try to launch an attack of the void and its kind? I think incursions and inter-dimensional warfare could be interesting.
ReplyDeleteSo far the only defense the Central Government has is the Void Defense Wall. It is incapable of attacking the Void itself. But, with further research, who knows?
DeleteWhile your map is fascinating, especially given the length of time you've been working and reworking it, I am interested in the stories of your world. You appear to know a lot more about your world beyond just the map itself. If I look at your map, all I see are the visually apparent features, but you seem to be able to see all the people who live there, the Central Government, the relationships the world has with the Void and the Red Dimension, the development of regions over time, gaining in population, increasing their infrastructure, and so many other aspects that make your map so much more than just a pretty picture for you.
ReplyDeleteMy question for you is this: How much of this world have you recorded? Do you have volumes of information written or is it all kept in your head? One day this map will be your posthumous legacy, will it be a map of a world or just a map?
Ahhhh....such ponderings!
DeleteI have kept population records since the beginning as well as various other records through the years. But the actual Map story is mostly in my head. I would love to find a writer who wanted to record it!