Head over to the post “A World of Maps, Folded Flat” at graphic designer and information theorist RJ Andrews‘ Chartography.net for the behind-the-scenes tale of how Andrews and paper engineer Ray Marshall worked on “turning the David Rumsey Map Center’s spectacular stairwell into a pop-up book.” Andrews walks us through his initial conceptual process (including sketches) while also communicating just how much this physical space has meant to him.
Luckily, he also links to Marshall’s post about the making of the book. Marshall includes a fascinatingly detailed full-screen auto-play video taking you through the printing, die-cutting, and assembly process.
I should note that the final product isn’t exactly a pop-up; some assembly on the part of the reader is required. But it’s nevertheless a remarkable feat of paper engineering. I love these sorts of behind-the-scenes posts which offer us a glimpse into the process behind these works of art.
