The drawing shows me at one glance what might be spread over ten pages in a book.”
– From the novel, Fathers and Sons (1862) by Ivan S. Turgenev
– From the novel, Fathers and Sons (1862) by Ivan S. Turgenev
When art collides with science, can the outcome be a visualization that communicates meaningfully to both the scientist and the “other”? If it’s not within your purview of experience it should still be relevant and meaningful. But how does a visual designer successful navigate within the domain of a scientist?
Deconstructing a complex idea eliminates essential properties that gives it meaning in the first place. Finding the space between scientific meaning and an aesthetically pleasing design can only be achieved through a constant dialog between the designer and the scientist. It is an iterative process that involves sharing developmental sketches until the final outcome satisfies both parties. It's this sensemaking-strangemaking vortex (more on this in another post) that produces effective visual artefacts to help communicate complex science.
(full disclosure: the images shown above are not created by the author. These images informed a design process that was used to produce a high-level visual overview of a laboratories research goal - which must remain confidential at this time.)
Deconstructing a complex idea eliminates essential properties that gives it meaning in the first place. Finding the space between scientific meaning and an aesthetically pleasing design can only be achieved through a constant dialog between the designer and the scientist. It is an iterative process that involves sharing developmental sketches until the final outcome satisfies both parties. It's this sensemaking-strangemaking vortex (more on this in another post) that produces effective visual artefacts to help communicate complex science.
(full disclosure: the images shown above are not created by the author. These images informed a design process that was used to produce a high-level visual overview of a laboratories research goal - which must remain confidential at this time.)
