Image Mapping

Useful information

Team members: Iaroslav Gerashchenko
Country: Ukraine
Keywords: rural area installations camp Ukraine community mobilization media production

Short Description

About revitalizing of social lives of rural communities with makers and cultural activities.

Detailed Description

"Image Mapping" is the project on intercultural dialogue, revitalization and uncovering the beauty of rural communities. It fosters international interpersonal exchange in the countryside, promotes shared non-formal learning, activates and empowers participants, explores the local heritage and promotes it.

Image Mapping revitalizes rural communities and engages its participants in 4 ways:
Revitalization of the local heritage through media production and workshops on traditional crafts;
Revitalization of the public life through intercultural events;
Revitalization of the space through the art transformations ("Alive pictures", creative refurbishments);
Revitalization of the entrepreneurial spirit through raising participation and boosting the incoming tourism prospects.

The project got its name from the so called «Alive pictures» that are the installations forming the touristic routes. The routes gather and present interesting places in the partner communities.

Project Details

Does your design take social and cultural challenges and human wellbeing into consideration?

Our two main target groups are participants of the community action camps and the local inhabitants of the host villages. We address needs of both of the groups through:

[Participants of the actions]: 1) By enabling intercultural dialogue and sharing during the events and other activities of the project; 2) By letting participants acquire practical skills and competencies like manual work, learning crafts, producing media materials, managing an international camp, fundraising; 3) By letting the participants explore and help preserve the cultural, historic heritage and natural background of the hosting communities.

[Inhabitants of the rural communities]: 1) By building intercultural dialogue and sharing with the participants, by enlivening social life of the community with public international happenings; 2) By promoting the community via media and touristic routes and by boosting the incoming tourism; 3) By stimulating active citizenship and sense of entrepreneurship of the community members and by stimulating their follow-up actions.

Does your design support sustainable production, embodying circular or regenerative design practices?: Yes, our community actions are replicable as are built on the same methodology provided we raise enough funds to complete the whole set of goals. So far we have been active with our "Image Mapping" community actions in 7 rural communities in Ukraine and 1 in Lithuania. Our hallmark feature is the production of "Alive Pictures" (http://imagemapping.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/ImageMapping2.jpg) that form a backbone of our makers activity during the camps - participants carry them out together with the local population and through these we underline the beauty of the local heritage/nature.
It is possible to factually endlessly replicate the project methodology and its activities in the communities where we find willing partners.

Does your design use principles of distribution and open source?: Yes, we are open for collaboration around our community actions with other actors interested in rural development projects of the targeted area. Moreover the project web-site (http://imagemapping.org/) is conceived to host media produced in a deregulated manner - contributed by local activists, enthusiasts and partners. We see it as a showcase database of hidden beauty in rural area emphasized by cooperative actions on producing "Alive pictures" and other cultural initiatives.

Does your design promote awareness of responsible design and consumption?: "Image Mapping" promotes the shifting of focus from huge cultural centers in urban area to rural context and ignites interest of a tourist in exploring the alternative to crowded and famous destinations. Therefore it supports the local economies in the countryside and our "Alive Pictures" create distinctive image of how design can emphasize the surrounding reality.