Mind's...Mind Map :)

An interesting visual illustrating functional centers of human brain. Happy Viewing :)

Mind Blown

”I am always doing things I can't do, that's how I get to do them.” ~Picasso

Data Visualization :)

Came across this remarkable graphic while browsing this morning. 

Following are the attributes that make Visual Communication  an extremely effective tool:

• Simplicity: Information is conveyed with easy-to-decipher simple images instead of pages of written or typed text.
• Relationships: Correlation & Trends are easily evident in visuals.
• New Insights: When one looks at compressed & reorganized information, new connections & insights pop-up every now & then.
• Decision Making: Spectacular images (magnified maps, engineering drawings, Venn Diagrams) helps the viewer comprehend data & make decisions real quick.

Check out this excellent interactive on printmaking (thanks Julia!) by MoMA - http://tinyurl.com/lqxaox. And if printmaking sparks your curiosity, do stop by Danforth Museum of Art this weekend - we've an ongoing (and much talked about) exhibit on Boston Printmakers :)

'Graphics is the visual means of resolving logical problems.'~Bertin

[Image Courtesy - iA Inc]

FIFA Fever :)

When you take a break from watching & cheering your fav teams & players, check out these visually captivating links:

>> Interactive World Cup Schedule - here

>> Opening Ceremony - here

>> Eye Popping infographics by Brazillian designers - here

Till sooner-Hip-Pop Hurray :D

Colour is my day-long obsession, joy and torment.~Claude Monet

[Image Courtesy - ADA]

Hand Painting Art...

While talking to a friend who is taking up Bharatnayam classes this summer, I learned about importance of hand gestures in traditional Indian dance styles. These gestures (also called Mudras) are powerful means of non-verbal communication & they often invoke strong emotional instant responses in the viewers. For ex in Anjali Mudra, one would press the palms of both hands together firmly with fingertips pointing upwards & bow one's head slightly towards the recipient. This centering pose brings the practitioner in a meditative mindset and is symbolic of unification of left & right hemispheres of the brain. The pose symbolises respect, greeting & humble salutation.


As I decided to spend rest of the weekend reading about various mudras & their significance, I came across AT&T's inventive ad campaign which depicts stunning hand-painting artworks by Guido Daniele. Some other works of this remarkable Italian artist can be viewed here, here or here.

Art is everywhere, except it has to pass through a creative mind.~Louise Nevelson

[Image Courtesy - AT&T]

Give & Get !

One of the several things that continues to intrigue me is the science of symbols. Symbols appear to be incredibly powerful and quick way of communcation. Few notable (and well designed) symbols can stir up instant emotions in our minds. Apple logo for an example creates euphoria, ultra simple ONE logo makes one emphathetic, yin-yang symbol evokes contrasting feelings, red octagonal STOP sign evokes urgency and so on.  I recently finished reading 'Man and his Symbols' by Swiss thinker Carl Jung. In the book author emphasizes the importance of balance, harmony, color & context in deciphering any symbol and the impact of these characteristics on human mind. His views on Art Therapy are quite interesting too and I hope to read few more books on the subject to better understand science of symbols in the days to come.

Anyways it's Friday and with a great weather forecast, guess it's time to head outdoors (zoo, beach, botanical garden, whale watch, trekking, camping etc) and truly enjoy the sunny weekend ahead! And in case you plan on going shopping too, grab this shopping pass (Thanks TJ!). In addition to a cool campaign (love the logo design), the idea that GAP'll pass along 5% of the purchase amount to WWF is ingenious indeed!

Art is the triumph over chaos.~John Cheever

[Image Courtesy © GAP]

Embrace Life...

What an incredible visual way to convey to communicate a simple yet powerful message of "SAFETY FIRST". Sheer genius indeed !

"The world is but a canvas to the imagination."~Henry David Thoreau

Learning can be...

simplified and made fun - not always though :-)

Whenever I see the documentation that comes alongwith Enterprise Software Products, I always wonder why do companies create an impression that understanding of their products is such an uphill task? This is how the standard learning life-cycle goes when one sets out to learn a new software tool or product:

• You download all the whitepapers and documentation about this cool new software product (DB Security Tool, DWH Reporting Tool, Analytics Tool etc)
• You open one of the PDFs and find the Index extending to first 10-12 pages. Using the Index Section and sub-sections hyperlinks, one can locate information read fast,which is cool indeed.
• You finally make your way to the content only to be presented with tons of verbiage and references to other sections in the PDF or sometimes references to other PDFs too :(
• You spend some time trying to navigate elegantly through the PDF and couple of minutes later you declare that it's better to learn the tool by experimentation rather than going through this seemingly infinite documentation.
• As you experiment, you make some notes, some illustrations and once you gain a firm grip on this new tool/technology, you realize that it wasn't rocket science afterall!

And then you wonder why do some folks/companies create this "Illusion of Complexity" rather than coming up with creative ways to enhance the learning process!

During our weekly docent meeting at Danforth today, we were presented with a quick walkthrough into "Sculpting Process" during presentation on Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller-the multi-talented African American artist, we were shown the sculpting tools-brushes, rubber, casting, mallot etc and a visual demonstration (Thanks Julia!) on how sculpting works. In less than 10 minutes we could understand not just the basic sculpting process but we could relate it to Meta Fuller's biograhy and work we read earlier too. This reinforces my views about "Visual Thinking". I strongly believe that under right circumstances, our brains can absorb so much more information visually and quickly when compared to the conventional "Read and Understand" style of learning.

To illustrate a quick example, think about how best you can explain a scientific process say "Photosynthesis" to a person from a totally non-science background. I found several descriptions about "Photosynthesis" for example...

• Photosynthesis consists of light reactions and dark reactions. This process can be simplified in this equation: 6CO2+12H2O + Light Energy → C6H12O6 + 6O2 + 6H2O.(Source ~ Biology Online)
• The conversion of light energy into chemical energy in cells that contain chlorophyll, a green pigment. Photosynthesis occurs in most plants and algae and in some bacteria and protozoans. The process is also called carbon fixation......(Source ~ Howstuffworks)
• In green plants, light energy is captured by chlorophyll in the chloroplasts of the leaves and used to convert water, carbon dioxide, and minerals into oxygen and energy-rich organic compounds (simple and complex sugars) that are the basis of both plant and animal life. Photosynthesis consists of a number of photochemical and enzymatic reactions. It occurs in two stages..... (Source ~ Britannica)
  
  

Now take a look at the image above or this demo and see for yourself the simple practice of using pictures to understand Photosynthesis! Oh and if you like visual thinking take a look at this visual primer on The Art Of Complex Problem Solving.

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."~Leonardo da Vinci

[Image Courtesy-© Factmonster]

Speaking Of Visual Thinking...!

What's do best athletes, best entrepreneurs, best musicians, best graphic designers, best curators, best software programmers and ofcourse ace artists have in common? Other than the fact that they are well known (though that's now always true with s/w programmers :)), they all utilize their Visual Thinking skills for problem solving, idea generation, improving themselves and delivering near perfect performances when required. Well have a look at the following pitch-hope you like it. And good luck with solving everyday challenges visually.

"One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself"~da Vinci