The work that visualisation conventions do
This paper argues that visualisation conventions work to make the data represented within visualisations seem objective, that is, transparent and factual. Interrogating the work that visualisation conventions do helps us to make sense of the apparent contradiction between criticisms of visualisation...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Journal article |
| Published: |
Taylor and Francis (Routledge)
2016
|
| _version_ | 1797068437476868096 |
|---|---|
| author | Allen, W Kennedy, H Hill, R Aiello, G |
| author_facet | Allen, W Kennedy, H Hill, R Aiello, G |
| author_sort | Allen, W |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | This paper argues that visualisation conventions work to make the data represented within visualisations seem objective, that is, transparent and factual. Interrogating the work that visualisation conventions do helps us to make sense of the apparent contradiction between criticisms of visualisations as doing persuasive work and visualisation designers’ belief that through visualisation, it is possible to ‘do good with data’ [Periscopic. 2014. Home page. Retrieved from http://www.periscopic.com/]. We focus on four conventions which imbue visualisations with a sense of objectivity, transparency and facticity. These include: (a) two-dimensional viewpoints; (b) clean layouts; (c) geometric shapes and lines; (d) the inclusion of data sources. We argue that thinking about visualisations from a social semiotic standpoint, as we do in this paper by bringing together what visualisation designers say about their intentions with a semiotic analysis of the visualisations they produce, advances understanding of the ways that data visualisations come into being, how they are imbued with particular qualities and how power operates in and through them. Thus, this paper contributes nuanced understanding of data visualisations and their production, by uncovering the ways in which power is at work within them. In turn, it advances debate about data in society and the emerging field of data studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T22:10:47Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:51bb84d2-2c30-4ba0-a925-255bf1955aa3 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T22:10:47Z |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publisher | Taylor and Francis (Routledge) |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:51bb84d2-2c30-4ba0-a925-255bf1955aa32022-03-26T16:21:21ZThe work that visualisation conventions doJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:51bb84d2-2c30-4ba0-a925-255bf1955aa3Symplectic Elements at OxfordTaylor and Francis (Routledge)2016Allen, WKennedy, HHill, RAiello, GThis paper argues that visualisation conventions work to make the data represented within visualisations seem objective, that is, transparent and factual. Interrogating the work that visualisation conventions do helps us to make sense of the apparent contradiction between criticisms of visualisations as doing persuasive work and visualisation designers’ belief that through visualisation, it is possible to ‘do good with data’ [Periscopic. 2014. Home page. Retrieved from http://www.periscopic.com/]. We focus on four conventions which imbue visualisations with a sense of objectivity, transparency and facticity. These include: (a) two-dimensional viewpoints; (b) clean layouts; (c) geometric shapes and lines; (d) the inclusion of data sources. We argue that thinking about visualisations from a social semiotic standpoint, as we do in this paper by bringing together what visualisation designers say about their intentions with a semiotic analysis of the visualisations they produce, advances understanding of the ways that data visualisations come into being, how they are imbued with particular qualities and how power operates in and through them. Thus, this paper contributes nuanced understanding of data visualisations and their production, by uncovering the ways in which power is at work within them. In turn, it advances debate about data in society and the emerging field of data studies. |
| spellingShingle | Allen, W Kennedy, H Hill, R Aiello, G The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title | The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title_full | The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title_fullStr | The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title_full_unstemmed | The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title_short | The work that visualisation conventions do |
| title_sort | work that visualisation conventions do |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT allenw theworkthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT kennedyh theworkthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT hillr theworkthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT aiellog theworkthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT allenw workthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT kennedyh workthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT hillr workthatvisualisationconventionsdo AT aiellog workthatvisualisationconventionsdo |