LORI MICU
The Art of Mapping
When it comes to representing ideas, there are no limits to what Lori Micu can do! Lori’s work explores the combination and disjunction of narrative vs visual output, landscape architecture vs architecture vs politics and more. By using beautiful and unlikely color combinations, experimenting with different methods of communicating design, and turning her research into beautiful works of art, Lori is an inspiration to all of us!!
For this interview, Lori will talk about her process, research, inspirations and more!
Lori, please tell us a little bit about yourself.
I am a Landscape Architect, currently based in the UK, working as part of a landscape and environmental planning practice. In my spare time I gravitate towards drawing as a creative outlet, mostly as a way of pushing myself to find and experiment with new ways of researching, synthesising and representing information (hence the "mapping this, that and the other" fixation).
Your images seem to be a visual representation of your research in landscape architecture. Mapping, diagrams, perspectives and text all combined to create beautiful compositions! How do you get inspired to create your images? What is the narrative behind them?
My process starts with the narrative and its visual output completely disjointed, which I know goes against everything we have been taught about operating within our profession. I am not trying to be subversive, just to compartmentalise.
The message comes from reading news, books or articles. I find a topic that engages me to explore further in order to build a minimal knowledge on the subject, which more often than not is culturally and socially charged.
If I feel inclined to produce graphic work stemming from that, I usually build a framework for my research, which enables me to identify a key message and the best way to relay it. I always try to edit information without compromising the core idea and I do not tip-toe around issues if I feel I am in a position to address them.
In particular, 'Mapping Landscapes of Colonialism' was triggered by the backlash coming from professionals within our field towards organisations and governing bodies expressing public support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Their main argument was that architecture, planning and related professions should not be involved in “politics”. It needs to be acknowledged that our work is often an integral part of the discrimination apparatus, a direct result of us blindly, or even consciously, following deeply flawed strategies and policies in a heavily politically loaded environment.
My work on this topic attempts to explore how architects and urban planners have been (and still are) designing and implementing projects which are revealed as incredibly violent towards certain communities once we start analysing their objectives and methods. While most drawings are focusing on colonial projects pre and post-Scramble for Africa, I was able to identify planning strategies rooted in racist and discriminatory practices that are nonchalantly applied to this day, albeit re-branded and marketed differently. Even the idea that I am dissecting deep human trauma so I can produce aesthetically appealing work has made me reflect on my approach every step of the way. I, for one, still have a lot of learning to undertake.
“I do not tip-toe around issues if I feel I am in a position to address them.”
What are you currently working on?
Nowadays I feel less prolific as I am balancing my personal projects with the desire for additional professional training for my daily job (BIM pains anyone?).
My intention for the near future is to focus more on the impact of large scale infrastructure and its ramifications on cultural and ecological landscapes, within the wider environmental justice topic.
I am also itching to experiment with materials to add a 3D model feel to my collages, potentially incorporating clay and corrugated cardboard into the mix.
Your drawings are a work of art! Could you tell us a little bit about the use of color in your images? How do you compose color? Do you decide the color palette before starting the image?
Thank you for the kind words. In the past year or so I have been gravitating towards a minimalist colour palette.
I often fall back on using a couple of shades of red, blue and pink, which I find work well together regardless of the background colour. It is an approach I have been taking for a while now and I find that blue linework with pink and red accents against black and white colour blocking has been keeping the graphics simple enough while giving me something to play with as well.
Every time I try to add more colour I immediately regret it. I find it ironic that, as a landscape architect, I avoid shades of green more than anything else.
Who or what influences you graphically?
Hands down comics, graphic novels, street art and illustrations more than anything else. I feed off books and online resources on Jack Kirby, Sergio Toppi, Moebius, Eliza Ivanova, Deathburger, Tomer Hanuka, Robert del Naja (3D) and James Jean, just to name a few.
These sources of inspiration align more with the approach I take towards my personal projects, where I intentionally deviate quite a bit from professional standards. As a result, my drawings are not the most accurate or scientific in their representation. I would qualify them as illustrative interpretations rather than architectural drawings.
Could you talk about the process to create one of your images? What tools do you use? How do you experiment with different materials and methods?
When I use collage as a medium my approach is somewhat haphazard. I start by going through my stock of recycled cardboard and paper and deciding on a main base piece before selecting additional parts of various sizes and textures as overlay.
I end up chopping and changing them, maintaining visual appearance as my only focus, before settling on a composition. I then stick everything together in a way that prevents me from pulling them apart and reshuffling them (as I have ruined multiple drawings in the past by not knowing when to stop). Once this base is fixed, only then I start thinking about how the drawn information and research might fit within these aesthetic parameters. I do a rough sketch in pencil to establish a layout, then I draw everything in pen and often finish it with acrylic markers and ink.
Digital work is definitely my "get out of jail free card". I make sure to have as many layers as possible (I mostly use Procreate nowadays) because I see it as my stress-free creative playground, where I can explore ideas and come back to them after a while as needed.
What advice has influenced you as a landscape architect?
Pretty sure this is not advice I have directly received from someone, but one notion I always try to obey is "the map is not the territory". Without getting too philosophical here, "mistaking the map for the territory" is something I feel our work is often at risk of doing, as we can sometimes get absorbed into representations that bear little or no resemblance to the reality on the ground.
Especially when dealing with the current constraints, which have massively interrupted community engagement as we once knew it. Conducting site visits has become a challenge and even when we do get the chance to explore an area, we barely get the scope of how the local community manifests. It has become critical to have a heightened awareness of how we analyse, design and respond to any brief.
And if this qualifies as advice (cosmic nonetheless), my Mom sometimes sends me a weekly career horoscope which is hilarious in itself and that reminds me not to take everything too seriously.
What advice would you give to young designers?
Considering I am probably as qualified to give advice as that horoscope my Mom sends, I predict that Mercury retrograde is here to keep you playful in your ninth house of higher learning and to help you channel your Adobe Creative Cloud. The universe is telling you to cultivate an open mind, your opinions are not the only ones out there.
If I had to give a more serious piece of advice to my younger self, I would encourage early engagement with the social, cultural and environmental implications of our work. It might not always be glamorous and you will sometimes feel powerless, but they need to be acknowledged. And say ‘Thank you!’ to Stefani when she interviews you for Arch-Vizz.
“I would encourage early engagement with the social, cultural and environmental implications of our work.”
Lori, thank you for taking the time to interview with Arch-Vizz and talk about your beautiful work!
You can find more about Lori Micu's work on instagram @lorimicu_lomi
Interview & Images Courtesy: Lori Micu
Interviewer: Stefani Fachini