The Art of the Map

 Mt Buller first Australian summer map for artist Rad Smith

In a time that can feel dominated by AI and computers there is something very cool about the mindful, slow craft of creating alpine resort trail maps.

You might not realise, but the ski maps we love to frame for our walls, carry in our pocket and pore over after a ski day are almost always created with real paint and tiny brushes – by hand. And they are now almost always painted in a little studio in Bozeman Montana by a guy called Rad.

Rad Smith has taken over the niche of trail map painting following the retirement of the legendary James Niehues who retired after 30 + years in 2021.

Although satellite images and digital mapping can create something similar, there is an art to capturing alpine resorts and developing a map that delivers much more than an exact measurement of the terrain. As map-painting guru James Niehues explains, “A natural hand-painted image invites exploration, reflection, and planning. These ski maps are used like no other maps, not just to navigate the slopes but to represent the mountain’s range of difficulties and amenities. They are like fingerprints.”

When Mt Buller wanted to capture a new perspective of walking and riding trails across both Mt Buller and Mt Stirling the team approached Rad Smith with the project – and happily he agreed to the job!

It was to become Smith’s first Australian summer project – a departure from the predominately pine tree covered mountains that make up the bulk of his mapping work.

Rad explains,

“This project was an exciting challenge to capture the Australian landscape including a very different forest landscape and colour palette to what I am used to. Due to a different tree canopy, the overall texture of the forested areas has a unique look and feel that I attempted to capture. Additionally, in the summer you have a diversity of rocks and ground-covering plants in the open areas that also contribute to a varied texture and colour palette. These elements are just different enough from what I’m used to observing and depicting in North America, that it made for a challenge that was easy to over-think at times.”

Why get an artist to paint the map?

Although drone photography and digital mapping are a helpful part of the process these hand-made maps do a better job of helping people orient themselves, precisely because they take some artistic licence with slight tweaks to the perspective to show what a skier, hiker or bike rider needs to navigate around the mountain. A satellite picture might hide part of the trail where Rad can warp the view slightly in his painting to make it visible.

“The biggest challenge with any trail map is to determine what features need to be included to make the image a recognizable and useful tool for wayfinding. This is countered with the need to simplify or eliminate certain items in order to fit the necessary elements into one single view. You also have to be careful not to get caught up in too many details, otherwise the image becomes too busy and even harder to navigate.”

Working drawing and initial paintings start the process...

“Every map starts with gathering as much visual information about the area as possible. Looking at existing maps and satellite imagery is a great way to get an overview of the area, with the location of roads, buildings, and other developed. Additionally, aerial images either from an aircraft or drone are also critical to better understand how the landscape catches the sunlight, where the shadows fall and how to best depict the hill shading to show slope angle and texture. While referencing all of these resources throughout the process, I begin by developing a basic line draft to communicate the proposed approach and angle of view to be shown in the map.”

“I then utilize the line draft to create a detailed pencil sketch – basically a B&W version of what I propose to paint. And from the sketch, I begin to develop the painted image, starting with the background and work towards the foreground, essentially working from the top of the illustration to bottom. It’s always a new puzzle for me that’s fascinating to figure out.”

Rad Smith is a name you’ll be seeing more of on trail maps as you visit alpine resorts around the world.

Take a moment to appreciate the summer map of Mt Buller in the walking trails brochure next time you visit!

• To see more of his work visit his website