WINTER 2021
Art 199/297 Independent Study Working Syllabus*
DATA VISUALIZATION COLLECTIVE
the convergence of science, art, and technology for digital storytelling.
*This syllabus is a working document where we will flexibly
assess our progress and adjust our goals throughout the quarter.
We will meet Fridays 1-3PM at the recurring Zoom meeting here:
https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/97566353210?pwd=aU95SjIxZmo0UXVwdDJaUDAzU2tHUT09
(see email for passcode)
We will use a combination of 2 organizational resources:
-A website for our collective: https://datavisualization.sites.ucsc.edu/ to host videos, data visualizations, and links to external resources
-A shared google drive: to host datasets from contributors, share large files and workshop recordings, and internally generated resources (working syllabus (this document), jargon glossary, links to resources, surveys).
A 10-week independent study group with weekly meetings to build tools to explore data visualization and storytelling using several powerful design platforms (PowerPoint, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe After Effects, Autodesk Maya, Statistical Software R, Javascript Web Editors: p5.js/d3.js).
Week # | Before we meet | Topic | After we meet |
Week 1 (Jan 7) | n/a | No meeting | n/a |
Week 2 (Jan 15) | Introductions | Exchange contact info with contributors & make sure you have everything you need to move forward. Contributors will upload data and resources to shared drive. | |
Week 3 (Jan 22) | Watch this & download PowerPoint & Adobe software. | Intro to Data Visualization, Digital Art, and Design | Share your style guides (please download and fill out in PowerPoint) with your data contributors for feedback, Create some vector graphics according to my step-by-step tutorial, Create some raster graphics in Photoshop or Procreate as well if you would like. There are tons of tutorials on digital painting but here is an example. While you are working in Illustrator and Photoshop this week, please drop your graphics and color palettes into your Adobe CC library. You can then share your CC library with your collaborators so they have access to your awesome designs! Here is a tutorial on using CC libraries. |
Week 4 (Jan 29) | Watch this & explore links for Photoshop & Illustrator. | Compositing figures with Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator and creating PowerPoint slides. | Due next week: - Put together your graphical abstract composition (.png). Once that is done, also create an animated version in PowerPoint (.pptx). Submit these via Canvas by next class. Due at midnight the night before (Thurs Feb 4) so that we can compile the abstracts for our first critique/celebration! |
Week 5 (Feb 5) | Submit Assignment 1: Graphical abstract on Canvas and here (.png & .pptx) Download and install Adobe After Effects; Watch Animation in After Effects tutorial (1h) Download and install Autodesk Maya; Watch Animation in Autodesk Maya tutorial (1h) | Graphical Abstract Critique / Intro to Motion Graphics & Animation | Due next week: - Use your graphics and some raw CSV data to animate the science and tell a story. The animation can be as involved or as simple as you would like, but must be submitted in .mp4 format and incorporate one of the techniques we discussed in our meeting this week. |
Week 6 (Feb 12) | Submit Assignment 2: Animation on Canvas and here. | Animation Critique / Intro to Coding in R - | Due next week: - Use a program of your choice (R, Matlab, Python, etc.) to code a figure for your publications. Make use of at least one new skill learned through this group if you are an experienced coder. |
Week 7 (Feb 19) | Submit publication-ready figure here. | Intro to WebDesign / Overview of Online DataViz Software. | Due in two weeks: Interactive Website - Use RShiny, HTML/CSS/Javascript, Observable, or Jupyter Notebooks to create an interactive web interface where anyone can interact with your data. Use this as an opportunity to submit something you would like feedback on for your final project. |
Week 8 (Feb 26) | Learn about d3 and react | Interactive WebDesign and office hours for webpage project. | |
Week 9 (Mar 5) | Submit webpage here. | Office hours for Final Project. | Final Projects: due March 11th. I invite everyone who has participated this quarter (students and auditors welcome) to submit your data visualizations in the form of a final project to be exhibited on our website. Your final project should be hosted on a website and include your assets (raster/vector graphics, figures & plots etc.), titles, subtitles, descriptions, as well as embedded or linked source code. These visualizations will be a part of Winter Open Studios for the Art Department and exhibited virtually on the "VizWall" hosted by the Media Library. Please fill out this survey to provide some preliminary information on your data visualization: https://forms.gle/ZmYqgiP2Pg11ZP4r6 Your final projects will be due at midnight on March 11th. All enrolled students must complete a final project (on time) to receive a passing grade. |
Week 10 (Mar 12) | Submit final project here. | Final Project Critique/Celebration. |
You will have 5 assignments. For each assignment you have the choice to use a sample dataset or to acquire your own (from your own research or a consenting researcher):
1) Assignment 1 (15 pts): Graphical Abstract. Create an informative and creative graphical abstract to accompany a scientific publication including graphics, illustrations, and data!
2) Assignment 2 (15 pts): Animation. Simple animation incorporating motion graphics and visualizing 2D or 3D data using Adobe After Effects or Autodesk Maya.
3) Assignment 3 (15 pts): Publication-ready figure. Design and plot a clear, responsible, concise, and beautiful figure for publication using ggplot in R.
4) Assignment 4 (15 pts): Interactive Website. (RShiny/p5.js/d3.js/Wordpress) Create a webpage that allows people to explore and interact with your dataset.
5) Final project (40 pts): Collaboration. Collaborate with any scientist at UC Santa Cruz to create a data visualization using a platform of your choice. This final project will be virtually exhibited at: our course website (https://datavisualization.sites.ucsc.edu/) the EEB Consilience Art-Science Gallery and more!
We acknowledge the stressful times we are in and value your wellbeing and safety. Please communicate early and openly if you need assistance, time, or flexibility. Your grade will be based on effort and completion. Your time and effort will serve as a building block for us to develop these ideas into a full, UC-wide online course on data visualization techniques for digital storytelling.