Lectures will be held in-person at the Newberry and livestreamed on Zoom. Advance registration is required and will open at a later date.
Mapping from Mexico: New Narratives for the History of Cartography
The 2025 Nebenzahl Lectures continue to promote new thinking in map history by asking how orienting our stories from Mexico, looking out toward the rest of the world, challenges common narratives and popular assumptions in the history of mapmaking. Despite the prominent role mapping in Mexico has played, cartographic histories are often told from a European perspective. But how do the stories we tell, methodological assumptions we make, and categories we define about maps and map history change when we treat sites of production and reception in Mexico—from Mexico City, Oaxaca, and Puebla to the borderlands—with the same specificity map history has given to European centers?
We are thrilled to welcome Raquel Urroz Kanán, professor of Geography and Anthropology at UNAM, for the keynote address. Over three days we will also hear from a variety of speakers including art historian Daniela Bleichmar, historian Guadalupe Pinzón Ríos, art historian Emmanuel Ortega, historian Alex Hidalgo, art historian Mónica A. Ramírez Bernal, and Layla Bermeo, curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. To end the weekend, the speakers will participate in a roundtable discussion, hosted by art historian Barbara Mundy.
Additional Activities
The 2025 series will feature an exciting array of events that will take place alongside the talks, including a map fair, a papermaking workshop, discussions with local artists, exhibition tours, and presentations of unique and important maps from the Newberry’s collections.
Presentation of Curated Collections - Experts on the history of mapping in Mexico will present maps from the Newberry’s collections. During these presentations, visitors will be able to see maps important for Mexico’s history in the Newberry’s collection up close!
Exhibition Tours - The exhibition Mapping Outside the Lines will be on-view throughout the weekend. Visitors will have the chance to hear more from the exhibition organizers about the maps of Mexico on view, as well as notable maps of Mexico in the Newberry’s collections.
Rare Map and Book Fair - A map and book fair will run on the second and third day of the lecture weekend, featuring leading map and book dealers from across the country.
Vendors
The map and book fair will include the following vendors, among others:
Event Schedule
All times are US Central Daylight Time (UTC-5)
Thursday, October 16th
- 10:00am-12:00pm: Lectures
- 1:30-5pm: Artist workshops and talks, exhibition tours, and collection presentations
- 6:00-7:30pm: Keynote address
Friday, October 17th
- 9:30am-12:30pm: Lectures
- 2:00-5:00pm: Artist workshops and talks, exhibition tours, and collection presentations
- 5:00-8:00pm: Map and book fair opening
Saturday, October 18th
- 9:00am-5:00pm: Map and book fair continues
- 10:00–11:00am: Lectures
- 11:00am-12:30pm: Roundtable with all the speakers
- 10am-4pm Artist workshops and talks, exhibition tours, and collection presentations
Cost and Registration
This program is free and open to all. Advance registration required.
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