We coexist in a space of multiple worlds—seen and unseen, noticed and unnoticed—existing simultaneously in the same physical space. Each of us navigates the world uniquely, guided by what we observe, value, and interpret as significant. This walkshop explores the personal and subjective nature of navigation and cartography and the diverse ways people perceive and move through space, using the acts of walking and drawing as primary methods of investigation.

This walkshop was developed for and implemented as a part of the proceedings of the International Prespa Walking Arts Encounters 2025 (WAC 25) Walking Home / Walking in Transition.

>> Structure of the Walkshop: Participants will walk alone, but work in pairs (e.g., 12 participants = 6 pairs) and begin from a central meeting point. The walkshop will unfold in three stages:

– Mapping the Journey (First Walk)
Each participant sets off alone from the central location, with the task of drawing a hand-drawn map of their journey as they walk toward a personally chosen or discovered destination. The destination is to be guided by a search for significance—to find something that resonates with them along the way. The maps can include landmarks, symbols, impressions, all drawn with the knowledge and intent that their partner will later attempt to follow the same path. Participants are asked not to use any written text or labels in their maps, they are encouraged to engage in a practice of looking through drawing, and communicating without words. Once they have completed their map from the starting point to the point at which they found something significant to note, they return to the central location.

– Following Another’s Perception (Second Walk)
Upon returning to the central location, participants exchange maps with their partner. Now, each participant sets out alone again—this time following their partner’s map to locate the significant thing to be found at the destination. Their goal: to find the location indicated by the map and then draw what they perceive to be significant when they arrive. This stage introduces an element of interpretation and ambiguity—what are clear directions may be vague to another, what one person finds meaningful may not be obvious to another. Participants are encouraged to embrace this space of potential poetic disconnect, and to move forward in good faith and with their best attempt to understand the “other” through what is offered.

– Reconvening and Reflecting (Convening and Reflection)
All participants gather one final time to share their maps, stories, and drawings of the significant things that were found at the destinations. The discussion will center on the differences and overlaps in perception, orientation, and meaning—highlighting the plurality of experience in navigating shared spaces.

>> Conceptual Foundations and Core Ideas:
This walkshop draws inspiration from several projects that explore subjective experiences of navigation and connection through drawing and exchange. It references Ben Buckland’s trek across Switzerland, during which he relied solely on maps drawn by strangers he encountered along the way, and Nobutaka Aozaki’s From Here to There (Manhattan), a project where the artist assembled a composite map of Manhattan using hand-drawn maps provided by strangers. Additionally, the walkshop is informed by the collaborative work TRACE, created with Scottish artist Deirdre Macleod, which investigated the potential for remote connections through the exchange of records of close looking. The act of mapmaking and following unfamiliar maps draws attention to the personal biases we carry in how we see and navigate space. Drawing maps and observations by hand encourages a slower, more engaged way of seeing, shifting participants from text-based direction-following to visually-driven navigation. The inevitable gaps, distortions, and interpretations inherent in using someone else’s map, and interpreting someone else’s idea of significance, become a poetic exploration of communication—what we convey, what is missed, and what emerges in the process. This process reflects the essence of the pluriverse, as participants engage with multiple, coexisting perceptions of the same shared space, revealing the layered and diverse ways we make sense of the world around us.