Gallery: Cartographic Arts: Beautiful Maps From the Atlas of Design
John Nelson01Nelson
John Nelson used data from the NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center to map the direction of travel for 63 years worth of tornados (he wrote [a blog post](http://uxblog.idvsolutions.com/2013/06/tornado-travel-map.html) where you can get all the nerdy details about how he did it and see larger versions of the map).
Tom Patterson02Patterson-detail
National Park Service cartographer Tom Patterson is a master of texture and shaded relief. He's released this gorgeous map of Canyonlands National to the public domain, and you can see and download a the full version [here](http://www.shadedrelief.com/banff/).
Alex Hotchin03Hotchin
[Alex Hotchin](http://alexhotchin.com/) spent several weeks walking and riding around her family's farm and the surrounding area before making this map. She heard many stories and learned a lot along the way, and the map is filled with adorable details ("Snuffy lives in a paint tin in the shed.")
Andrew Umentum04Umentum
This map documents Andrew Umentum's 5-month bicycle trip from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast and back. The idea of breaking the trip into strips came from a 1675 road atlas. The illustrations capture some of his experiences along the way.
Dong Zheng05Dong-Zheng-2
This map borrows its aesthetic from centuries-old tradition in Chinese art, but it depicts and ultramodern technology: the highspeed railway between Beijing and Shanghai. It's a reminder that the train passes through many ancient places, Huffman says.
Jake Coolidge06Coolidge
This meticulously hand-drawn map depicts the Columbia River watershed. Drawing complex geographies by hand gives the cartographer a deeper understanding of a place, says its creator, [Jake Coolidge](http://www.jakecoolidgecartography.com/).
Jake Coolidge07Coolidge-detail
A detail of the Columbia River watershed map.
Barry Richards08FindARoomAtlasOfDesignArtwork-g219
Different views of the same location and a simple color scheme help users find their way to places on the campus of the University of South Wales in this [interactive map](http://findaroom.southwales.ac.uk/). The blue palette is a nod to an architect's blueprint.
Superinteressante Magazine09Asta-Trim
The map fades to the background in this graphic and bright colors draw the viewer's eye on the main point: trafficking routes for cocaine and heroin.
Bruce Daniel and Nora Daniel, for <a href="http://bestlocalmap.com/" target="_blank">Best Local Map</a>10The-Asheville-Map-Side-B
This map depicts essential sights in Asheville, NC, including its many excellent breweries. QR codes embedded in the corners link the paper map to updated info online, making it a digital-paper hybrid. Sales benefit a local food bank.
©Splatosphere, LLC11Brackley
This map was created for a children's book, *The Legend of Ice Cream Island: The First Cold War*. "Like all maps of secret or unknown lands, this map was designed to spark the imagination," the mapmakers write in the *Atlas*.
