Refering to Anderson's map of New York p37 1. Detail cumulates into larger coherent structures 2. Detailed and complex information can lend itself to simplicity in its reading 3. A most unconventional design strategy is revealed: to clarify, add detail.
A critical and effective principle of information design: panorama, vista and prospect deliver freedom of choice derived from an overview, a capacity to to compare and sort though detail. p38
Universal visual experiences, rooted in human information-processing capacities. All of us have stood on a hill or building and looked out onto a cityscape, vista, panorama, teeming with information, condensed into a city/landscape.
Note the list of descriptive adjectives, top of page 50.
It is not how much empty space there is, but rather how it is used. It is not how much information there is, but rather how effectively it is arranged. p50
Questions/Discussion
1. Who said "God is in the details" ? Mies van der Rohe
2. Analyze one of your designs. How much empty space is there? Describe the figure ground relationship and how it addresses the issue of the virtual space of the computer monitor. there is a lot of empty space..which is fine.. b/c not every webpage should be cluttered with information.. SPACE HOGS!
3. What kinds of macro/micro relationships exist in your work? not many now.. but soon will as a class project
1. How can you (or have you) enhanced the dimensionality and density of information in your work? (Note: Information is not limited to data.) i could have definitely used more traditional forms of media incorporated into my work.. such as photographs and video footage, on the one hand, however, on the other hand i originally wanted to enhance my project using Flash to easily build semi-complex web' works'. Now that its built, my site visually lacks a feel for real world objects and models which would, if were used in my creation, stimulate a more universal feeling , rather than the reliance of appreciation for what ever it is I do. Having made that point, i'd like to state how much i enjoyed reading Tufte.. he really does look at the way in a 'kick ass' design kinky world.
2. What principles govern your design? How do you critique your work and decide what is successful, what is better? my principles were simple.. 2d design.. from the start i was thinking more along the lines of a tight interface.. however as i started to work.. it came out more like another colorful work.. with the only things even resembling any interface feature were the loading of external movies into an internal type of window.. and the boxed areas for holding imaginary content. my critique is.. its not my favorite work. i would throw it away and start on something new if i weren't pressured with school and work and exams. the only real success was gaining experience after having done lots of individual flash works this semester and the new love and appreciation i have for the beautiful design of the software itself..
3. Where in your work does art intersect with design? that's a good one.. i would say they intersect heading in the same direction.. on a quick parallel crossing of lines and 2d graphics. its a 'go with it' type of work..never for once did it make me jump back and wanna kiss myself like the godfatha'.. but its alright for what it is.
4. How do you feel about the statements Tufte makes on page 1 concerning Flatland? how i feel? certainly.. i agree, and then kinda just think how i kinda admire him.. he is just critiquing design.. and cooler: the beautiful , and some times intriguing design of real world models, holding solutions to very technical 2-dimensional data mapping problems. i like his book and what he does.
5. Tufte's goals are "to increase (1) the number of dimensions that can be represented on plane surfaces and (2) the data density (amount of information per unit area)." Are these your goals as well? certainly, although not achieving the goals as well as the given examples.
6. Note: pg 15: "Nearly every escape from flatland demands extensive compromise..." noting on that.. what is truly remarkable is the fact that some of these escapes drawn on 2 dimensional surface are still nearly impossible to read after studying it for 15 minutes or more.. but visually they are impressive charts holding a mass of information where compromise sounds light.
7. What is the "grave sin of information design"? Pridefully Obvious Presentation. (p16) Is your work too obvious? Are there elements that clash or stand out that should be muted, toned down? actually .. its very colorful.. some might agree it could use toning..
8. The advantage of "small multiple" is the economy of perception(p29); "once viewers decode and comprehend the design for one slice of data, they have familiar access to to data in all the other slices." "Multiplied smallness enforces local comparisons within our eyespan..."(p33) How can you utilize small multiples in your work? web design calls for a lot of this type of perception.. allowing surfers to easily navigate through your breezy site requires the user to quickly understand his/her environment in order to move right along.. keeping consistent "multiples" are friendly :)
9. Tufte ends chapter 1 with a warning about "false escapes from flatland...pretend dimensions...fooling around with information." How do you decide if you are guilty of this? i decide after the : "i think i should keep working on the design" phase. 10. Have you presented rich amounts of detail, layers of readings ataining high standards of excellence? not rich.. but not poor, excellence in the form of "it might stay in a portfolio".. i might build more on it too.
[3] Layering and Separation -----------------------------------------------------------
1. Confusion and clutter are failures of design, not attributes of information 2. 1 + 1 = 3 or more 3. What matters is the proper relationship among information layers. The visual relationships must be in proportion and harmony to the substance of the ideas and data conveyed. 4. Use an implicit grid, Tables should not look like nets 5. Note the rules of color pg 58 6. Note more color rules pg 63
1. What is your color scheme and how is it applied to define space and separate layers in your composition? my color skeme uses a variety of soft colors. i applied the colors to various levels of almost random ordering of my components. i used differnt amounts of grey(in several shades) for the empty space to provide a neutral ground for the freeq wave-depleted eye
2. Observe your negative space as an object - the space between two elements becoming a third. Is it harmonious and in proportion to the other positive forms? yes
3. Count the number of layers used in each design. Can there be more? less? Is your space flat or deep? there could be more.. and less. space is flat and deep.. a compromise of dimension and space.
