At HealthDataViz, we have three weekly meetings:
One to review client projects and schedules
One where the development team discusses a new technique or solves a technical problem they may have bumped up against
One that is focused on a book or topic of interest that helps us think about our work and ideas in new and exciting ways
Each meeting is important, but there is something about the third one that really gets folks talking.
Some past discussions have been inspired by books such as Don Norman’s classic, “The Design of Everyday Things” and Steve Krug’s, “Don’t Make Me Think.” This week, the topic was “Genius Steals,” inspired by Austin Kleon’s TED Talk — Steal Like An Artist.
As I wrote in my newsletter published November 7, 2014 (yes, that whizzing sound is my life rushing past me), the writer Oscar Wilde is attributed with quipping, “Talent borrows; genius steals.”
Consider how the Beatles describe being inspired by Elvis, and the Rolling Stones by Muddy Waters and other blues artists. Would we have the work of Charles Dickens without William Shakespeare? Star Wars without the mythologist Joseph Campbell? Would I even try to set a dining room table properly and decorate my Christmas tree without Googling Martha Stewart — of course not, that’s just crazy talk.
The same is true of data visualizations; ideas and innovation do not just spring onto the page. They are the result of understanding the data and domain we are working in, knowing the best practices of data visualization and how to use technology and, finally, searching for inspiration (i.e., stealing good ideas) to keep designs innovative and fresh.
These ideas can come from anywhere — other visualizations, books, podcasts, art, nature. Some of my best ideas come when I am looking at architecture, or a well-designed garden, or when I’m working on a jigsaw puzzle.
What do the structures reference? How has nature combined colors? How do shapes fit together? Although these examples are seemingly unrelated to data analysis and visualization, they contribute to many of the concepts we use to get data onto the page in a clear and compelling way.
Lindsay Betzendahl, Senior Consultant and Design Lead at HealthDataViz, recently developed a short (two-minute) video for a talk she gave about how and where she finds inspiration and how to correctly give attribution. (Please pay special attention to the attribution piece if we at HDV provide you with inspiration!)
I encourage you to take a couple of minutes (literally) to watch Lindsay’s talk, here, I know you’ll find it interesting and… inspiring.
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