We’re carrying on with our workshop series on archiving the architectural landscape with ArchCode Almaty. The second session kicks off tomorrow at 11:00. Topic: “Mental Maps as a Tool for Place-Based Research.” We would like to invite students, architects, emerging local historians, and anyone passionate about architecture and the urban environment to join us. Free admission.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

1. Who needs to study architectural landscapes and place identity—and why?
2. How do we begin to “read” the city’s landscape and its sense of place?
3. How can we learn to document both phenomena?
4. How can mental maps support the study of architectural identity?
5. What methods exist for using mental maps as a research tool?

Here’s what we’ll do:

1. Each participant will choose their own focus for a short field research activity and create a personal mental map of a specific place.
2. We’ll then discuss the resulting maps as a group and try to assemble them into a collective “carpet” that could serve as a foundation for further place-based research within the broader city context.