The Chambers of Geography: Hypotheses on Places Where Other Places are Simulated,

Marcello Tanca

2021-01-01

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Abstract

The present study dovetails with topics previously discussed in my recent book Geografia e fiction (Tanca, 2020), with a particular focus on the link between geography and simulation. More specifically, I will reflect on places where simulations of the actual world take place. The hypothesis stems from the fascination exerted by simulating machines like magic lanterns, Wunderkammern, peepshows, panoramas, and dioramas, perspective boxes, virtual reality, etc. These ‘geographic chambers’ are all constructed situations producing an illusionistic mise en scène: the space compression occurring inside them enables us to immerse ourselves in places that are geographically very distant from us.