People have been creating data art for thousands of years!

Hello friends, 

Last week I shared images of a few pieces of my data art with you. If you haven’t heard of the term “data art” before, it is an artistic creation that is based on data. Whereas a lot of data is visualized as standard bar charts and line charts, data art is using more unique forms to display and communicate information. 

A lot of data art is digital. But a good amount of it is actually in a physical form. This includes knitted scarves, metal art sculptures, and beaded jewelry as just a few examples. When people create physical forms based on data this is known as data physicalization and people have actually been representing data in a physical form for thousands of years.

A piece of data art that I’m currently creating uses knots in rope to represent the different people who I’m meeting at my studio. I was inspired by the quipu, although I’m using different knots and a different format. 

In the weeks ahead I’ll share more details about that specific piece. I’m sure I’ll have more progress updates about that piece to share too!