Visualizing Knowledge is a yearly conference, showcase and workshops at the Aalto University in Helsinki, Finland. The aim is to bring together a diverse group of creators and decision-makers to discuss new approaches in data visualization and information design – designers, journalists, scientists, people from the public sector and enthusiasts. This year, the event is centered around design’s potential to reveal insight in data and relate stories that inspire action. The one-day conference features researchers, educators and practitioners from a variety of disciplines while the showcase exhibits new talents from information design research and education. Workshops leading up to the conference invite speakers and audience alike to learn about state-of-the-art tools and methods in data visualization and exchange ideas and contacts. The event is facilitated by faculty and students of the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture.
This year topic
Design. Reveal. Act. Across all disciplines – from the realms of politics and journalism to the fields of science and technology – the visualization of data has become a key part in every process that seeks to gain insight and enable transformation. This year, Visualizing Knowledge takes interest in the designers, scientists and journalists who are driving advancement in the fields of data visualization and information design, creating and using visualization in new and unusual ways to reveal issues and challenges through data. They are the modern-day heroes that expose hidden truths, make the unspeakable visible, shame manipulators and educate the public. Through their work, they reveal today’s challenges with painful clarity, making them impossible to ignore and turning design into a vehicle for change. As media consumers become more aware of the manipulative potentials of data, the demand for honest data visualizations (and people who create them) increases. Visualizing Knowledge seeks to nourish this desire while serving as a platform for exchange and inspiration.
Background
Visualizing Knowledge has been held every year since 2012 in Helsinki, Finland. It was formerly organized by Jonatan Hildén and Juuso Koponen from Koponen+Hildén. In 2017, the event became part of Aalto Uni-versity and is now organized by a highly motivated team of students and staff from the fields of New Media, Sound, Visual Communication and Information Design. Amongst many others, former speakers in-clude: Jen Christiansen, Scientific American (US); Alberto Cairo, University of Miami (US); Uldis Leiterts, Infogr.am (LV); Thomas Molén, Svenska Dagbladet (SE); Stefanie Posavec (UK); Kim Rees, Periscopic (US), Graham Roberts, The Economist (UK), Moritz Stefaner (DE), Jer Thorp (USA), Jussi Ängeslevä, ART+COM / HdK Berlin/RCA (DE/UK) and Javier Zarracina, Vox (USA).
Team
Rupesh Vyas – Professor, Event Programming
Adina Renner – Student, Event Manager
Minna Ainoa – Producer
