Taking a Line for a Walk is a performance by artist Susan Stockwell, documented in a 12-minute film, in which she physically mapped the historic boundary of Stockwell, South London. Using a custom-built line-drawing machine, Stockwell walked the 2.7-mile perimeter of the former district, laying down a continuous line of temporary white paint that remained visible for approximately two weeks. The action took three hours to complete.
By translating a little-known map into a full-scale, three-dimensional walking drawing, the work transformed cartography into lived experience. The line became both a physical trace and a conceptual gesture—defining place through movement, duration, and public visibility. The performance was part of Stockwell Festival and emerged from Taking a Line for a Walk: Mapping Stockwell, a collaborative project with pupils from Stockwell Park School.
_
Source: Susan Stockwell’s Vimeo page
Related
Scrambling for maps
March 2026 we are holding 3 online Map Scrambles, in which artists will be discussing when and why they use maps or mapping to document their walking art. Map Scramble 1 (Monday 23 7pm GMT) Map Scramble 2 (Wednesday 25 7pm GMT) Map Scramble 3 (Thursday 26 7pm GMT) Each events part of the
• 
• +14 radicant backpack
This device is a fragment of an exposition that I called “radicant biomap” at MARQ. Buenos Aires. A line, a horizon that cannot stop and through the inherited and sustained plain defines a map that proposes the march. Ephemeral roots that only leave temporary traces to move like the radicals towards a destiny made of condensations of strokes, to generate a more fluid cartography through time that not only repeats situations, but creates new scenarios between the urban, the rural areas and the delicious spaces in between. A map of a new condition, which moves us and moves us towards new experiences in the territory to once again apprehend the inner turmoil of life. Jh @jesushuarte.arte @territoriodearquitectura Buenos Aires. Argentina.
Strategies for Leaving and Arriving Home
Strategies for Leaving and Arriving Home was a six-week, 880 km performative walk from Melbourne to Sydney. Walking alone with minimal supplies, she documented interactions, support, and reflections, exploring vulnerability and relational experiences along the journey.
You must be logged in to post a comment.