Your Life Story Mapmaking Class

While wizards are not in the habit of turning up at front doors these days (alas!), everyone’s story is still an epic adventure. Join us for a remarkable 90-minute online experience that will teach you to map the most legendary realm of all: real life. Our guide on this quest is Brendan Lorber, a poet, writer, and artist whose fantastical biographical maps are on display in libraries and museums from Bed-Stuy to Edinburgh. Taking inspiration from classic fantasy fiction and role-playing games, Brendan’s imaginative style is uniquely suited to creating an extraordinary present for a friend or family member—and the class itself makes an unforgettable gift, especially for someone celebrating a milestone birthday.

Prior art experience is not required, but everybody will have some fun homework before class: listing the landmark events, passionate pursuits, and memorable moments that make up the history of their subject (these will become the map’s geographic features). Each map can cover a full life or focus on a specific time frame, such as the past year, college days, or that one amazing summer. Once the lesson begins, Brendan will get right into it with engaging, practical instruction and plenty of time to work and ask questions. No worries about specialized supplies, since this class comes with our custom Fantasy Mapmaking Kit, which includes a template on artist-quality paper, a French curve drawing tool, Brendan’s own cartography guide, a perfectly sized wooden frame, and more.

In an hour and a half, participants will go from apprentice mapmaker to master cartographer as they create a mythic masterpiece worth cherishing for years—drawing new versions may even become an annual tradition. While you likely won't finish your map in class, Brendan will equip you with the skills to complete your map with confidence. As Brendan says, Anyone can have a treasure map. In this class, you’ll be making maps that themselves are treasures.

Before class, you must complete the Concepting Your Map project, outlined here.

Giving this experience as a gift? Print out this card to let them know what's coming.

Want more Brendan Lorber? Check out our Romantic Mapmaking Class and our Pet Mapmaking Class.

Experiences make great gifts! To gift this class, simply purchase the class for the date/time you think will work for your recipient. If that doesn’t work for the recipient, no worries! Send an email that includes your order confirmation number to help@uncommongoods.com at least 48-hours prior and we’ll help get them moved into a scheduled class that works better for them. Please note: By default, order confirmations and event details are sent to the purchaser’s email. If you'd like this information to go to your gift recipient instead, select "this is a gift" under your chosen date. Once in your cart, you can enter the recipient's email address and choose a delivery date for the class confirmation email.

Looking to host a private or corporate event? Fill out the form on our Corporate Gifting Page.

Explore more of our upcoming Uncommon Experiences: View the Calendar