The Ursula K. Le Guin Foundation and the Watershed Center for Fine Arts Publishing and Research at Pacific Northwest College of Art are partnering up to offer a limited edition map of Earthsea based on drawings from Le Guin herself.
The map, which has both color and black-and-white editions, is based on two drawings from Le Guin that she did by hand years after A Wizard of Earthsea first went to print. As those who’ve read the books know, the land of Earthsea is an archipelago, where a young man named Ged unwittingly unleashes a darkness onto the world that he must then try to contain.
Le Guin’s later drawings of Earthsea were based on an original map she drew before writing that book, and include two versions: one line-drawn in ink and one done with ink and colored pencils.
The maps available for sale are based on these two drawings, and were created by Watershed Center students with guidance from master printmaker, Matthew Letzelter. The team went through a detailed process for creating these new maps, which included matching colors by hand and using a traditional lithography process to have these recreations match the originals in great detail.
The color version of the map is on sale for $300, with the black-and-white version going for $150. If you’re a student or educator, you can get a black-and-white map for $100. Net proceeds from sales will also go to Pacific Northwest College of Art and the Freedom to Read Foundation, and you can learn more and buy your own map by clicking the link here.
