European borders is a topic which has become more relevant in recent decades, given the migratory crisis faced by the EU and tightening tensions due to political populist pressures. This has become a symbol of the restrictions the pandemic imposed on our lives. Impossible to cross for months, or at least cumbersome in the ever-changing process of testing and providing certificates. National borders, forgotten by European citizens for decades in a slow but steady process of creating a more open EU, were suddenly very tangible again – a worsening perception also due to the tragic evolutions of the war in Ukraine.
"Print no border" reflects upon the meaning of frontiers and borders. What is depicted as a line in analogue and digital cartographies, actually crosses soils, fields, rivers, seas, concrete, water, stones, rocks, grass and trees.
From a methodological perspective, each print takes inspiration from the path of a border which is converted into an expressive sign and compared – if not visually opposed – to images inspired by surveys in the actual border area.
The project starts in a group of valleys in northeastern Italy, where the borders of Italy, Slovenia, and Austria cross. In the pursuit to create a contemporary experience, the project uses multiple media and tools; OpenStreetMaps and QGIS mix with mokuhanga, which is created using both hand carving techniques and laser cut technology. A storytelling website hosts cartographic and video narratives in the pursuit of creating a personal and local atlas of moving possibilities.
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