Sara Eichner—Outlier 2021—Data Through Design; Creating a Data Art Exhibition

Data Through Design; Creating a Data Art Exhibition How do you create a diverse, meaningful art exhibition using data as medium? This talk shares the story of Data Through Design (DxD), now in its fourth year, and the challenges involved in organizing an exhibition in the unique circumstances of 2021. DxD’s goal is to showcase tangible and multimedia expressions of data; to provide space for creative engagement, new perspectives and explorations of data’s role in our society. We look for projects that push and blur the boundaries of data visualization to inspire and challenge. To find such work we establish criteria to base our search and selections upon. It’s this criteria that drives a conversation about what escapes the boundaries of applied arts to become art. But the criteria are subjective and difficult to define. What qualities take work outside of convention? Should this creative work solve problems? Or challenge and ask questions? What role should beauty, novelty, and aesthetics take? And what about how we experience the work? And then there are more practical questions like how does each proposal fit into the yearly theme? Is the project feasible given space constraints? These are some questions the DxD volunteers debate as we plan the exhibition. This year the need to create safe access to the show has been a challenge and an opportunity, leading to alternative forms that can engage the audience on the streets and in public spaces of New York, as well as online or in a gallery. Above all, the goal is to instigate conversation and exploration; an exchange between the artists, their projects, and the audience. This talk will share examples of projects in progress to be included in the 2021 Ground Truth exhibition as well as the conversations they inspired during the organizing process. The DxD exhibition will take place during New York City’s Open Data Week: March 6 through March 14th.