informationdesign information design
informationdesign information design
Clutter is a failure of design, not an attribute of information. Edward Tufte
Edward Tufte Tufte has been described by The New York Times as the "Leonardo da Vinci of Data."
what is it?
what is it? The design of information-intensive projects: thinking of design from a user-centric approach
what is it? data is fairly worthless to most of us. to have value, it must be organized, transformed, and presented in a way that gives it meaning and makes it valuable.
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informationdesign information designhistory history Egyptian scribes sat every day in the marketplace and wrote hieroglyphic letters, reports, memos and proposals for their clients. At least since then, the business of assisting others to make their communications more effective has flourished. Robert E. Horn
Robert Horn, Horn, political scientist, USA : best known for his developmen developmentt of information mapping, a method of information development suited especially for technical communication. His latest contribution to the presentatio presentation n of information is called "Visual Language (1998)
evolution of informationdesign information design Today s world of information overload means that designers are frequently asked to organize and simplify massive quantities of information - in terms of the designer s evolving role in business, expertise in information design has become a key factor in providing value to clients.
Idw rockport
evolution of informationdesign information design visual language has emerged and evolved because of the urgent needs of contemporary individuals and organizations to deal with the complexity. Many ideas are best expressed with visual language, and other can only be expressed with visual language.
Along with information design, visual language has also developed rapidly in the past decade especially because of the widespread availability of computer graphics programs.
informationdesign information design
what is it? printed matter :
information graphics : interactive design :
environmental design :
magazines, packaging corporate communications maps, charts, and diagrams websites, screen based projects, digital media, hand-held devices wayfinding (directional signage design for public spaces) and exhibits (museums, etc.)
what is it? think : how will the user experience this information guide their journey through it process : Organize : Group : Declutter : Simplify
themes and patterns will emerge and you will find the story you want to tell
what is it? Think : an information designer is like a really good translator or interpreter. to create a good piece of information design, a designer needs to understand the goal of the piece and be able to get to the essential story or set of messages. messages.
what is it? Think : when you make information attractive and persuasive it affects whether readers will actually read and use the information
what is it?
Attributes of an information designer designer (A user-centric mindset)
what is it? >>
a passion for asking questions (find the story to tell) the ability to see detail and general respect for the end-user s time and needs the empathy to imagine what others feel a sensitivity to everyday annoyances the ability to observe and participate !! A sense of humor
what is it? there are thousands of ways we depend on design to help us sort through complicated information and complex choices – whether the information is online, printed, environmental, or experimental – design can cut through the clutter to the essence of an idea
what is it? searching for the aha moment
after all the collecting, the two partners of an agency say the hardest task is peeling away the density of data . as they work, they write the words what is the story? in large letters at the top of their worksheets as a constant reminder to find the very essence of the narrative. after all the simplifying, it s likely that only 25% of the total data will be used.
what is it? your idea must drive the design (not the other way around)
more examples charts, graphs and mapping humans show a remarkable need to visualize, understand, and catalog the world around them. we have been mapping geographic landscapes for centuries, we create charts and diagrams to analyze data and draw conclusions from it. well-executed information graphics create a sense of context and reveal relationships between sets of information, allowing for new conclusions.
what is it?
TIMELINE: Holy texts organized to create visual and conceptual connections between the different world religions. The information graphic is essentially a data visualization of the Holy Books of 5 world religions showing the commonalities and differences of Christianity Christianity,, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and
This graphic shows the 41 most frequent characters from different holy texts and their commonalities. Character names appear alphabetically on the x-axis. The size of the names and arcs are calculated from the total word count in all scriptures.
and finally Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler. Albert Einstein
who are the players?
who are the players? William Playfair lived during the american revolution 1775-1883 he invented several major types of graphics and charts and popularized them through his writings on political and economic topics.
who are the players? Florence Nightingale 1820-1910 invented new types of statistical graphs, and one of the first to use information design - in a public policy report (prepared for the Prime Minister during the Crimean War - which led to a revamping of conditions in british military hospitals)
who are the players? Irish, published statistical books) Michael George Muhall, ( Irish, Otto Neurath (austrian social scientist) organizational consultant and information designer) David Sibbet ( organizational Michael George Muhall invented pictorial statistics (late 1890 s) Otto Neurath developed a methodology for displaying them effectively (1973). David Sibbet devised a set of techniques for graphically recording the process of group dynamics as they develop during a meeting (1980).
who are the players? Charles and Ray Eames pioneers of modern information design the timeline mural and exhibition design from the 40 s to 60 s : Charles with his background in architecture, and Ray with her background in abstract expressionist paintings and textile design, designed pioneering and prize winning modern furniture, monumental exhibitions and later later,, information design. Although the timeline existed, theirs contained an unprecedented information-carrying information-carr ying capacity for historical currents and events and were the central organizing principal for designing exhibitions.
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who are the players? the British Information Design Society invented and popularized the term information design it s conferences have brought together users from several disciplines: designers, researchers in psychology and education, computer interface designers, performance technicians, typographers, advertisers. advertisers. This has led to developing interdisciplinary university programs in information design.
who are the players? Edward Tufte information design esthetician his three books, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information (1983), Envision Envisioning ing Information (1990), and Visual Explanations (1997), have provided the field of information design with pioneering studies in how communication can be both beautiful and useful.
who are the players? magazines and newspapers information design vehicles Nigel Holmes art director at Time In recent decades magazines and newspapers have been the leaders in the popularization of information design. Advertising designers have long known about and practiced, making information attractive and persuasive, to increase its chances of being read. Nigel Homes is an acknowledged teacher and pioneer in this area and described these
who are the players? Richard Saul Wurman information design vehicles Nigel Holmes art director at Time he raised public awareness of the importance of information design in his books, Information Anxiety (1989), Follow the Yellow Brick Road: Learning to Give, Take and Use Instructions (1992) and Information Architects (1997)
who are the players? wayfinding graphics signage for public spaces during the past 40 years, as the environmental graphic design profession matured, the range of wayfinding projects rapidly expanded. In the early 1970s signage was limited almost entirely to showcasing architects and developers buildings. today almost every type of public space and most private complexes require a wayfinding system. As our cities continue to sprawl, getting people from place to place and orienting them in complex spaces is increasingly complicated. p16 TWH