Mapping it out

William Hudson uses his imagination to create maps that show different endings to historic events

BY ALIA GAMEZ, STAFF WRITER

As the border lines are drawn and countries are set to scale, an alternate reality begins to take shape as sophomore William Hudson rewrites historical events through the art of map-making. In manipulating past events, Hudson explores the possible geographic locations of countries if the historical timeline had played out differently, giving a glimpse into worlds that could have been.

Three years ago, Hudson visited the Miami Map Fair — a congregation of sellers, creators and collectors — for the first time. Traversing the crowds of map- lovers, Hudson was inspired by the unique approach to learning history. Taking charge of his passion, he began a cycle of works that would soon transform from a laid- back pastime to an intricate collection of distinctive maps.

Focusing more on artistic style than research, Hudson made his first map in seventh grade. Playing out an alternate storyline of World War I, this map was a hypothetical creation of a world where the Treaty of Saint Germain en Laye and the Treaty of Trianon were lenient in their terms toward Austria and Hungary due to the involvement of the United States in the treaty-making process.

“Overall, considering it was my first shot at map creation, it was a key learning experience in learning what and what not to do,” Hudson said.

Over the years, Hudson’s work has progressed into highly-detailed graphics of historical scenarios from alternate realities. Recently, he has decided to expand his visions from realistic fiction to completely fictional work. Video games have also become a second hyperfixation of his, leading to him outlining maps of lands from video games like Hearts of Iron IV and Europa Universalis IV.

Hudson produces his graphics on online platforms such as GIMP, an image manipulation program. The option to go back and cut, paste and copy allows him to reimagine parts of history. For example, he chooses small battles to re-envision the course of a war, declaring a different victor than what is found in history books. His current focus is on the Cold War, visualizing a scenario where the United States took Berlin in place of the Soviet Union.

“I take smaller-scale moments and transform them into a big event,” Hudson said. “I like to think of it like the butterfly effect, changing something that [becomes] important in the grand scheme.”

Hudson’s ideas mainly stem from listening to his teacher, Kathryn Landsea, lecture in his history class. If a certain moment catches his attention during class discussions, he takes note of the incident for future maps.

Once Hudson has decided on his next project, he meticulously browses the internet for the correct information. Hudson spends a substantial amount of time researching his fixation to ensure he does not leave out any information that would affect his maps. Once he gathers as much information as possible, Hudson finally

starts working on the physical copy of his work. Draft after draft, his maps slowly gain depth and color, while explanations of what is happening in the map are written down and color-coded.

“Everyone likes a good story,” Hudson said. “A large part of history is creating this story. I’m creating a story that branches off from a moment in real history and explaining what happened.”

On his Instagram @risko789, Hudson showcases both his work and explanations of what he has created. With every photo posted, he writes out a detailed explanation of the lore: the situation that led to the borderlines drawn.

“I would not say that map-making is something I want to specifically put on my resume in the future, but I will continue using it’s aspects of digital design and the like in the future, but I will continue using it's aspects of digital design and the like in the future,” Hudson said.