The purpose of blog posts such as this is to chronicle my methodical reading of the book “Information Design Workbook: Graphic Approaches, Solutions, and Inspiration + 30 Case Studies.”
This reading is prescribed as part of my Independent Study II course at IAIA, a 3-credit “internship” where I work with a team of New Media and Museum Studies professors to fulfill a National Endowment for the Humanities grant. These posts will also allow me to create an archive of notes and thoughts about the book, for my reference and that of anyone that happens to be interested.
Reflections on the Preface:
- I love how the preface lays out several real-world examples of how information design impacts our lives. This immediately anchors the concept of design firmly in the mind of the reader. No longer is design relegated to the murky, abstract realm of esoterica. It also sets the stage for the case-study format of the book.
- Information Design (henceforth, “ID”) is more imprtant than ever, due to the sheer (and ever-increasing) amount of information (codified, chronicled, and catalogued), most of it in incomprehensible, impenetrable, forms, and therefore useless in practice. If information cannot be accessed, and understood, it may as well not exist.
- I dig the icons associated with each example, each one bearing an image that represents the essence of, or a prominent “associative” aspect of it––itself a demonstration of good design. They also act as “bullets,” as in bullet points, helping our brains to compartmentalize (organize) the information into instantly-recognizable “quanta” of info (bite-sized pieces). This diminishes any intimidation factor associated with large blocks of text all run together.
- I was pleased to know that I exhibit healthy doses of the many characteristics likely to be found in good information designers.
UNITY DESIGN 