https://sarahkaymiller.com Sarah Kay Miller Wed, 11 Jan 2023 20:12:09 +0000 https://sarahkaymiller.com en https://sarahkaymiller.com/about Sat, 07 Dec 2019 17:31:21 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/about <img width="1342" height="1343" width_o="1342" height_o="1343" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0fc41aeccc3be7fec28305c1567744d44872c6964eeeec9bb3c5edb8f224352b/sk_profile2019.png" data-mid="56205785" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0fc41aeccc3be7fec28305c1567744d44872c6964eeeec9bb3c5edb8f224352b/sk_profile2019.png" /> Hi, I'm Sarah Kay! I'm a curious designer who plays with data.&nbsp;Through visualization, I surface the humanity that lies at the root of data. I bring clarity to storytelling with data to support narratives; messaging in direct, approachable ways. I love to play with unexpected mediums and push the boundaries visualization. Previously I’ve worked as a senior data visualization designer at Pentagram on Giorgia Lupi’s team, and a UX designer at Domo. In 2017 I graduated with Honors from BYU's Graphic Design BFA program. In addition to being a designer, I'm a double cancer survivor (low-grade ovarian in 2022, Hodgkin’s lyphoma in 2014), writer, reader of long novels, and all-around data nerd. Currently freelancing in Brooklyn, NY with a posse of backyard stray cats. &nbsp; &nbsp; https://sarahkaymiller.com/Bill-and-Melinda-Gates-Foundation Wed, 11 Jan 2023 19:21:53 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Bill-and-Melinda-Gates-Foundation The Gates Foundation Our team at Pentagram developed a new data visualization brand system that combines the pragmatism of information design with the graphic expressiveness of a visual identity program. Created in collaboration with the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, the system was conceived to help tell rigorous, branded, and above all human stories about gender equality. The end result, dubbed a “creative platform,” is an innovative, data-driven visual language that represents a new model for how brands can communicate to their audiences with—and through—data.As issues of gender equity, access, and justice become more and more acute thanks to Covid-19, the team saw a broad mandate for their work, with the understanding that gender is not a side issue, but indeed embedded in every aspect of human society.&nbsp; Every element is constructed out of an equal sign (=) or a plus sign (+), reinforcing the centrality of these two concepts to the pursuit of meaningful gender parity. The plus and equal signs also often overlap, visually alluding to the idea of integration and gender as a lens through which to see the world. This graphic framework functions similarly to a logo or signature mark, while its simplicity and flexibility ensures that the creative platform can successfully grow to accommodate any type of data, content, messaging, or secondary topic. The core of the project was the creation of a vast, “kit of parts” design system that is innately data-driven and can be deployed in a variety of contexts and media. More than ten unique data visualization templates were created, always using the principle + and = motif, to demonstrate the different ways to communicate gender data. Each of the ten visualizations are unique, and move beyond traditional dataviz forms like bar charts or pie graphs to establish a thoroughly ownable graphic lexicon. The idea of “missing data” was also key to the team’s work. Quite literally, data is sexist: many countries do not collect data specifically about the lives and welfare of women, or the data is collected in such a way to be methodologically biased. To represent this sad reality (and emphasize the need for change) the creative platform explicitly calls out missing data as a type of data point itself, giving special credence to gaps in knowledge that may be clouding our understanding of this important issue. Since its introduction, the creative platform has been applied across various consumer touchpoints, from digital storytelling experiences to explain the pandemic’s impact on the economic livelihoods of women, to communications campaigns that focus global action on implementing gender-sensitive policy. As the world builds back from the pandemic in the years ahead, the creative platform can continue to help crystallize the urgent opportunity for a more equal society, and mobilize greater action and support using data-driven evidence. Full project details︎ In collaboration with Giorgia Lupi, Ting Fang Cheng, Talia Cotton, Phil Cox. Designed in Illustrator, Figma, InDesign, and AfterEffects. 2020–2022. <img width="2100" height="1124" width_o="2100" height_o="1124" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2c1c9b4164d0957fb7de13028aa769db2a422b03698ec467e0e2bc1b7e52d39f/brand.png" data-mid="164395175" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2c1c9b4164d0957fb7de13028aa769db2a422b03698ec467e0e2bc1b7e52d39f/brand.png" /> <img width="1920" height="1484" width_o="1920" height_o="1484" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c260326e6b826c5e8c4f586b1b5d3d05c6b6ac8477200e33f0a6c0d7c1f10938/210630_bmgf_styleguide_1920.gif" data-mid="164395172" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c260326e6b826c5e8c4f586b1b5d3d05c6b6ac8477200e33f0a6c0d7c1f10938/210630_bmgf_styleguide_1920.gif" /> &nbsp; <img width="1800" height="1800" width_o="1800" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/42cc585d6b404617f3b2a993c7e9e89482f0e2ec3261e3fa38ad58bb92ab395c/04_gates.png" data-mid="164395366" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/42cc585d6b404617f3b2a993c7e9e89482f0e2ec3261e3fa38ad58bb92ab395c/04_gates.png" /> <img width="6180" height="3962" width_o="6180" height_o="3962" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/63959cef8ddaba1a7ca1ad47dadc0ef442a26280ff24cd8bcac2e1b6517476eb/guidelines.png" data-mid="164394159" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/63959cef8ddaba1a7ca1ad47dadc0ef442a26280ff24cd8bcac2e1b6517476eb/guidelines.png" /> &nbsp; https://sarahkaymiller.com/Huguet Wed, 11 Jan 2023 20:12:09 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Huguet &nbsp;<img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/820030210a57c530ffafc32eff8df435453ec2ba1ba80eab2579eab5574aaf62/Huguet_IG-post_1.png" data-mid="164399796" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/820030210a57c530ffafc32eff8df435453ec2ba1ba80eab2579eab5574aaf62/Huguet_IG-post_1.png" /> Huguet Our team at Pentagram were invited to collaborate with the Mallorcan artisan hydraulic tile, cement and terrazzo producer Huguet to create a unique collection of tiles and objects. These tiles are data visualizations of Frederic Chopin’s famous 24 Preludes, which the composer wrote while living in Mallorca from 1838 to 1839. Their designs fuse the math-based nature of musical notation with the lyrical experience of listening to each piece.Each tile visualizes one of the 24 compositions, with different shapes and colours representing defining musical elements. Colour denotes whether the piece was written in a major key (reds, pinks, and yellows) or minor key (blues and greens). Thick horizontal stripes represent tempo, with more bars signifying a greater number of beats per minute. Conversely, thick vertical stripes signify the number of octaves each piece covers. The run time of each piece, in minutes, is shown by thinner, white bars running vertically. Finally, the musical characteristic of each piece—elegiac, scherzoidal, cantabile, and more—is visualized by the primary geometric shape that gives each title its defining character. Full project details︎ In collaboration with Giorgia Lupi, Ting Fang Cheng, Phil Cox. Designed in Illustrator. 2021. <img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e8a6b2e2d6225d23b7cca9ad0fabd873d447799fab3467d714a503ecc54a3524/Huguet_IG-post_4.png" data-mid="164399799" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e8a6b2e2d6225d23b7cca9ad0fabd873d447799fab3467d714a503ecc54a3524/Huguet_IG-post_4.png" /> <img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/83ca598bccc6dc8a8542ec6b5f774b6c4625474cc05161fea4a2cf2aef848f8f/Huguet_IG-post_3.png" data-mid="164399798" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/83ca598bccc6dc8a8542ec6b5f774b6c4625474cc05161fea4a2cf2aef848f8f/Huguet_IG-post_3.png" /><img width="980" height="1476" width_o="980" height_o="1476" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/84fda6c12fc026f8e9bf7eb47bf15e35215150beae32b5c22e8c37299509fb29/Screen-Shot-2023-01-11-at-3.20.37-PM.png" data-mid="164400046" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/980/i/84fda6c12fc026f8e9bf7eb47bf15e35215150beae32b5c22e8c37299509fb29/Screen-Shot-2023-01-11-at-3.20.37-PM.png" /><img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/473d449720bc5e47c0a8d9a1fecdedbdd008bb6e6974721218b6cbeddbb86157/Huguet_IG-post_5.png" data-mid="164399801" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/473d449720bc5e47c0a8d9a1fecdedbdd008bb6e6974721218b6cbeddbb86157/Huguet_IG-post_5.png" /><img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1ac7990d4994d4df1a76b790df17088fee9de40607630aff36526b3c690c7823/Huguet_IG-post_7.png" data-mid="164399806" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1ac7990d4994d4df1a76b790df17088fee9de40607630aff36526b3c690c7823/Huguet_IG-post_7.png" /><img width="2160" height="2160" width_o="2160" height_o="2160" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5050a2d2836ed6b345cc6a9031a3ff3dcb4b9bad4d7807652e6e17bd49f233a4/Huguet_IG-post_6.png" data-mid="164399805" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5050a2d2836ed6b345cc6a9031a3ff3dcb4b9bad4d7807652e6e17bd49f233a4/Huguet_IG-post_6.png" /> &nbsp; https://sarahkaymiller.com/Bulletin-of-the-Atomic-Scientists Sat, 16 Jul 2022 18:12:59 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Bulletin-of-the-Atomic-Scientists Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists The Doomsday Clock is the graphic symbol of the world’s proximity to annihilation through dangerous technologies of our own making. Created in 1947 by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, the advocacy group formed in 1945 by scientists from the Manhattan Project, the Clock is periodically updated, with its minute hand moved forward or backward from midnight, or metaphorical doomsday. In 2021, the Bulletin has decided to keep the Clock at its current setting of 100 seconds to midnight––where it was moved in 2018 and remains the closest it has been to midnight since 1953––in recognition of the continuing threat to humanity from nuclear war, climate change and disinformation. Pentagram partner Giorgia Lupi and team have created a series of data visualizations to accompany the 2021 announcement of the Doomsday Clock’s position. This is the first time the report has incorporated additional visual information on the man-made threats to our planet, and the infographics provide a detailed introduction to the issues at hand. (The Clock itself was previously redesigned by Pentagram in 2007, and has been periodically updated by the designers as the time has advanced or reversed.) The Doomsday Clock is a strong, simple icon that dramatically conveys how close the world is to destruction. The new visualizations go beyond the symbol to provide more granular information about what has brought the planet to the brink. The Bulletin has reset the minute hand on the Clock 24 times since its debut in 1947. Every time it is adjusted, the group is flooded with questions about the symbol and why the hands have been moved. For the latest announcement, the Bulletin wanted to offer an idea of the amount of research and discussion that actually goes into the decision to reposition the Clock. The Clock is most closely associated with nuclear risk, but its purview has included climate change since 2007 and now also encompasses disruptive technologies. The designers developed visualizations for each of these topics, reinforcing the Bulletin’s wider focus. The infographics were not created to aid in the decision making of the group, but rather are meant to illustrate everything that goes into it. The Pentagram team was invited to listen in on the deliberations of the Bulletin scientists, advisors and policy leaders to gather information and hear the considerations that lead to updating the Clock. The dense visualizations have been layered with qualitative and quantitative data that provide depth of detail and build a comprehensive narrative of the issue and its impact on the world. The events of 2020 are highlighted, but set within the context of the past, to offer a larger look at the history that has led to the present moment. For the designers, this meant going beyond simple bar charts and timelines to create something more dynamic and impactful. Each visualization utilizes a different form and has its own distinct color palette (red and orange for the infographic on nuclear risk; blue and green for the diagram on climate), but they all visually tie together as a group. The designs incorporate circular forms that echo the shape of the Clock and that reinforce the cyclical, time-based nature of the underlying issues, which are not always so linear. The Doomsday Clock appears on each, along with the message that “It is 100 seconds until midnight.” To make the visualizations more memorable, the backgrounds feature a collage of imagery and the hint of text, which was drawn from the discussions of the advisory panel and suggests the amount of analysis that went into the decision. Climate change is the focus of the second visualization, “A Warming Planet,” which is presented as a flowing linear timeline. The section representing 2020––one of the warmest years on record––has been enlarged as though under a magnifying glass, zooming in on the effects of environmental disasters such as wildfires and hurricanes, as well as the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions due to the economic slowdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Looking forward, the timeline projects rising temperatures and sea levels through 2100 and beyond. The disruptive technology visualization focuses on the Covid-19 pandemic, which has generated what the World Health Organization calls an “infodemic” of misinformation that undermines the public trust and society’s ability to address major threats of all kinds. Here, data sets on declining faith in institutions, varying opinions on the W.H.O., and slipping confidence in vaccination are depicted in a series of bar graphs that swell like waves of infection. In the background, a chart depicts the explosion of cases worldwide over the past year. The complete set of data visualizations can be accessed via the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists website, where visitors can also download the full report. Full project details︎ Designed in Illustrator. January 2021. <img width="1921" height="1201" width_o="1921" height_o="1201" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0e78e376dcffe78ead4a208034c8782a98b63bf906b0d43c026f63402bb8bcad/210125_bulletin_nuclear_FINAL_Nuclear72.png" data-mid="148015700" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0e78e376dcffe78ead4a208034c8782a98b63bf906b0d43c026f63402bb8bcad/210125_bulletin_nuclear_FINAL_Nuclear72.png" /><img width="1920" height="1200" width_o="1920" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/42420802dc0322c09fbde395a48bd15f7d54c8005f4e4fd56e3d07c61674f1de/02_nuclear_crop.png" data-mid="148015754" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/42420802dc0322c09fbde395a48bd15f7d54c8005f4e4fd56e3d07c61674f1de/02_nuclear_crop.png" /><img width="1920" height="1200" width_o="1920" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a228e4054ebb15fc413ec983e74ea7f1f39bef24252fc8bc449af18b59cf086f/07_nuclear_crop.png" data-mid="148015756" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a228e4054ebb15fc413ec983e74ea7f1f39bef24252fc8bc449af18b59cf086f/07_nuclear_crop.png" /><img width="1921" height="1200" width_o="1921" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/69bc3465f8beaae863ed31f6525f5b79165f0dacde48d447a9ac206568fb4409/01_climate_full.png" data-mid="148015743" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/69bc3465f8beaae863ed31f6525f5b79165f0dacde48d447a9ac206568fb4409/01_climate_full.png" /><img width="1920" height="1200" width_o="1920" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/63065ef1cc79be74f2d0ff30f53996d0ed9c48c30e23bf5259027d9249a104d4/03_climate_crop.png" data-mid="148015746" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/63065ef1cc79be74f2d0ff30f53996d0ed9c48c30e23bf5259027d9249a104d4/03_climate_crop.png" /><img width="2883" height="1803" width_o="2883" height_o="1803" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b7dccf68f3437f06be9db070c9ad0fece0423150cfeb62d02e2dcc4142f101b4/210513_bulletin_tech_WEB.png" data-mid="148015682" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b7dccf68f3437f06be9db070c9ad0fece0423150cfeb62d02e2dcc4142f101b4/210513_bulletin_tech_WEB.png" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/Covid-19-Charts Sat, 16 Jul 2022 17:57:03 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Covid-19-Charts Covid-19 Charts Like many New Yorkers, Pentagram’s Giorgia Lupi and team organize their day around Governor Andrew Cuomo’s press conferences and have come to rely on his steady explanation of where we are in the fight against Covid-19. With uncertainty and misinformation rampant, these regular, measured daily briefings have become a lifeline to reliable guidance. As information designers, the team has also been pleased to see the starring role that graphs and tables have played in these crucial presentations, and often see slides circulating afterward on social media. Even with their appreciation for the Governor’s approach, the designers saw the potential to improve the visualizations of his slide deck to more effectively and vividly communicate these important statistics. They wanted to inject more nuance, context and humanity into the Governor’s various graphs and charts, without sacrificing the exactitude the public has come to depend on. As a team, they decided to take a crack at redesigning the slides as a speculative exercise. The designers began their work by conducting an audit of the Governor’s presentations to date, trying to understand what made his visualizations effective, while also identifying areas they knew they could target for improvement. After rewatching several of his presentations, they quickly saw that legibility and simplicity were key. The data are vital statistics that everyone needs to know, so this was no time for anything less than total clarity. But they also realized that important, even critical information was being glossed over and ignored in these visual aids. There were additional insights hiding in the data, ones they felt were important to surface for the New Yorkers who tune in every day. The team also noticed that a few graphs are reliably shown at every press conference: a bar graph of hospitalizations, a list of numbers signifying deaths per day, and then a diagram illustrating the R0, or “R-naught,” the average rate of infection for the virus. The team decided to focus on these three core visualizations, redesigning them from the ground up and adding new layers of data that would enrich them. The designers also created a new visualization for COVID-19 tests given versus positive diagnoses. As testing becomes more prevalent across the state, they wanted to imagine what this graph should look like. The new visualizations contain key elements of the originals, including the color palette and fonts specified in New York State’s brand guidelines, and the familiar “Stay Home, Stop the Spread, Save Lives” footer graphic seen in the Governor’s slide deck. It’s important to reiterate that redesigning the slides is a wholly speculative exercise. Giorgia and her team are designers, not statisticians, and are not experts on these numbers. They know for instance that there are considerable discrepancies in how data is being collected by hospitals and health agencies. Some of the data included in these slides are not present in publicly available sources, so the designers had to make informed conjectures (noted with asterisks). Despite these shortcomings, the designers believe this work is a meaningful starting point for more successful data visualizations. Their role here is merely as engaged citizens who care deeply about ensuring comprehensive understanding of the pandemic’s unfolding impact. Above all, they hope this project begins a conversation about the role of information design in crises such as these, and will continue to iterate on this work as more feedback is collected from the field. Full project details︎ Covered by Fast Company︎ Designed in Illustrator. April 2020. <img width="2001" height="1646" width_o="2001" height_o="1646" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/33827e717ade2d8f10e239dae54974b4a0c637e5a464a572f27009e7e429837d/02-200430_cuomobefore_intro-2.png" data-mid="148014899" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/33827e717ade2d8f10e239dae54974b4a0c637e5a464a572f27009e7e429837d/02-200430_cuomobefore_intro-2.png" /><img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6d5eb26c45cf5e08d341deac9148045621fbdb9da341ddec2726b3bee1cb7fc8/02-200427_cuomosketches.png" data-mid="148014735" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6d5eb26c45cf5e08d341deac9148045621fbdb9da341ddec2726b3bee1cb7fc8/02-200427_cuomosketches.png" /><img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ad562c6c7c23a3d04eaddd7d6efac79f198b147249423a3eda6915da480cf807/03-200430_cuomoslides_20_Summary-2.png" data-mid="148014736" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ad562c6c7c23a3d04eaddd7d6efac79f198b147249423a3eda6915da480cf807/03-200430_cuomoslides_20_Summary-2.png" /><img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1fd4a50047071f4edcd70506bdd1e80c9e7b1f2b2514572862b9550774a6b1b3/04-200430_cuomoslides_06_Deaths-1.png" data-mid="148014737" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1fd4a50047071f4edcd70506bdd1e80c9e7b1f2b2514572862b9550774a6b1b3/04-200430_cuomoslides_06_Deaths-1.png" /><img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/eb07a7803904289099580ec99d0e663ef8e40423945dd5007912245701a6b584/06-200430_cuomoslides_07_Deaths-2.png" data-mid="148014901" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/eb07a7803904289099580ec99d0e663ef8e40423945dd5007912245701a6b584/06-200430_cuomoslides_07_Deaths-2.png" /><img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d84d79a3e522b047881a2bbcc4f795bceff47f9510085ce6a262773094e4f8e7/06-200430_cuomoslides_10_Tests-3.png" data-mid="148014739" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d84d79a3e522b047881a2bbcc4f795bceff47f9510085ce6a262773094e4f8e7/06-200430_cuomoslides_10_Tests-3.png" /> <img width="1080" height="608" width_o="1080" height_o="608" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e0d7fff8b162f36db204e304dddb2f804c47aadd80b428b0b2208f06e1cf3be8/01-200430_cuomoslides.gif" data-mid="148014734" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e0d7fff8b162f36db204e304dddb2f804c47aadd80b428b0b2208f06e1cf3be8/01-200430_cuomoslides.gif" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/Mapping-Ourselves Sat, 16 Jul 2022 00:26:15 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Mapping-Ourselves ‘Mapping Ourselves’ In the different stages of our lives, we’ve all been taken care of, we’ve all taken care of someone dear to us and, at some point, we’ve all had to take care of ourselves. But have we ever stopped to think about how we do it? What does our caregiving network actually look like and how can we use information design to understand and make sense of it? Pentagram partner Giorgia Lupi and her team have designed a suite of six personal data-collection activities for Atlas of Caregiving, a California-based nonprofit that focuses on the role of care—both giving and receiving—in individuals’ lives. Collectively titled “Mapping Ourselves,” the activities combine personal reflection and data drawing in a series of exercises that help participants understand the community of people who contribute to their well-being. Lupi collaborated closely with Atlas founder and CEO Rajiv Mehta on the project. Atlas uses research, workshops and self-help tools to enable people to visualize the invisible “care ecosystems” in their lives, with the end goal of enhancing self-understanding and mindfulness. The organization is affiliated with the Quantified Self (QS) movement, a community of people around the world who develop and use tools and methods to examine their personal lives in order to improve them. “Mapping Ourselves” features low-tech tools for observing, visualizing and analyzing different aspects of life that might impact our sense of health and wellness. The activities have been conceived to help participants see their community and value what they contribute to and receive from the people around them—and importantly, how these networks and interactions are interconnected. The tools are presented in a workbook that guides participants through the process of each activity. The Pentagram team developed the concept and experience of the program, from the focus of each activity and its particular data set, to the process of collecting data and sharing it with others in collaborative, community-building workshops. Participants observe their own behavior, interactions and personal networks, then translate the data into drawings using a legend provided for each tool. “Mapping Ourselves” can be experienced as a day-long workshop or as a take-home activity, where participants record their data each day. After the data drawing is completed, participants answer questions to reflect on the process, before sharing them with others. At a time when personal well-being seems increasingly dependent on science and technology, the activities of “Mapping Ourselves” are decidedly analog and accessible to almost anyone. The project centers around the value in interpersonal connections, and utilizes the principles of “data humanism”—focusing on data that people can actually relate to, rather than as something that must be impersonal and intimidating. In her work, Lupi uses data as a tool to understand human nature and to reveal patterns we don’t always see. Lupi first collaborated with Atlas of Caregiving in 2015 on the Atlas CareMap, an activity that asked participants to diagram the relationships, connections and interactions of the people they care for, and who care for them, and where they give or receive help, support or advice. The hand-drawn sketches are simply rendered but socially complex, visualizing the often invisible threads of care with family, friends, coworkers, doctors and other healthcare professionals, neighbors and even pets. Drawing the networks helps the participants better understand their current situation and plan for any potential difficulties. Family caregivers found the CareMap so useful that Atlas began leading workshops to teach more people how to create their own visualizations. The sessions were intentionally designed for empathetic listening and engagement amongst participants. As people talked about who they cared for and who they received care from, Atlas started to notice how the conversations seamlessly moved from care for oneself and family to care for one’s community. Building on the success of the CareMap, Atlas approached Lupi and her team at Pentagram to develop additional activities that could address other aspects of community-building. The designers found inspiration in Lupi’s earlier “Dear Data” project, in which she and collaborator Stefanie Posavec observed aspects of their daily lives and documented them in hand-drawn visualizations on postcards that they sent to one another over the course of an entire year. Lupi and Posavec subsequently created Observe, Collect, Draw!, a workbook that guided readers through the process of documenting their own lives. Lupi first realized the power of personal data collection as a tool for health and well-being with “Bruises,” a collaboration with the musician Kaki King that documented the illness of King’s child in a series of drawings. Making daily observations on physical symptoms and lab results as well as emotional responses gave the family a humanizing sense of empowerment in the face of illness. The Pentagram team began the design process for “Mapping Ourselves” by observing a typical Atlas of Caregiving workshop. Noting the critical role of conversation amongst the participants, the designers conceived five new activities that are designed to provoke dialogue: Social Networks—Who do you work or socialize with, and what roles do they fill in your life? Map out the people who inhabit your life to become more aware of your relationships with them. Conversations—Who do you talk with, and how does it impact you? Observe your conversations over time to become more aware of whether they leave you energized or drained. Daily Activities—What do you spend your time doing? Track your activities to see where you devote time and how that impacts your mood and sense of satisfaction. Environment—How do the spaces you inhabit affect your mood and performance? Observe the different physical environments you inhabit to better understand how they impact your sense of well-being. Body Connection—What is your body telling you? Visualize how your body and mind feel throughout the day to find out how they are connected. The Atlas CareMap has been redesigned to live seamlessly alongside the other activities and serves as an entry point to the series. Each activity in the “Mapping Ourselves” workbook features a worksheet for daily collection of the specified data set and clear instructions for translating the information into an unique data drawing. The designers developed grids that are easy to fill in from day to day and a system of graphic symbols and marks that are colorful and visually interesting. As “Mapping Ourselves” workshops roll out in various communities, they will help people discover how they can apply the observational and analytical skills they already have to collect and understand their own data and use it to improve their lives. Full project details︎ Designed in Illustrator.&nbsp;January 2020. <img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fa63cf88997ad77aac77bb202f552116a10a3f67e4d100c49149fdf0d2e7bd69/03-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_010_3000px.png" data-mid="148009679" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fa63cf88997ad77aac77bb202f552116a10a3f67e4d100c49149fdf0d2e7bd69/03-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_010_3000px.png" /><img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ac2c389efca4b5fd153943fe6f78d6214b2c471878852565de032461dec5866e/02-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_004_3000px.png" data-mid="148009666" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ac2c389efca4b5fd153943fe6f78d6214b2c471878852565de032461dec5866e/02-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_004_3000px.png" /> <img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7869fa541cc70e3a45ad89e44fd947a92a7868d2f85e8bf82390e0155ce25b9b/06-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_011_3000px.png" data-mid="148009696" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7869fa541cc70e3a45ad89e44fd947a92a7868d2f85e8bf82390e0155ce25b9b/06-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_011_3000px.png" /> <img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9e1123298a6bafc7f7764699b31fd09b313b1519da5a3ab9fe95880400f5c88e/07-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_009_3000px.png" data-mid="148009697" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9e1123298a6bafc7f7764699b31fd09b313b1519da5a3ab9fe95880400f5c88e/07-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_009_3000px.png" /><img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3ea879514ec4be79725c3e6f8b19b8a19ec4978d634729a669c6759e9f17353b/08-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_006_3000px.png" data-mid="148009698" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3ea879514ec4be79725c3e6f8b19b8a19ec4978d634729a669c6759e9f17353b/08-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_006_3000px.png" /> <img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f92e0771864360592d075e356c0ca69200cf2552d5efe5a89be5d6a21cce7550/05-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_007_3000px.png" data-mid="148009693" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f92e0771864360592d075e356c0ca69200cf2552d5efe5a89be5d6a21cce7550/05-GL_Mapping-Ourselves_2020_007_3000px.png" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/MCNY-What-Counts Sat, 07 Dec 2019 17:31:20 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/MCNY-What-Counts <img width="3000" height="1870" width_o="3000" height_o="1870" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/befc443c570c6c0a78d161ac607c3c76d3bc71660f4eb78ee5e83f340c795d08/gl_mcny_00.jpg" data-mid="56196176" border="0" data-scale="99" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/befc443c570c6c0a78d161ac607c3c76d3bc71660f4eb78ee5e83f340c795d08/gl_mcny_00.jpg" /> “What Counts” at MCNY “What Counts” is an interactive installation in the “Who We Are” exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York. This project reimagines the US Census questions—highlighting both unique individuality and our shared humanity. Full project details︎ See the rest of the exhibition︎ Prototyped with Procreate, Illustrator, Javascript. Developed in collaboration with Accurat, November 2019 <img width="600" height="600" width_o="600" height_o="600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/88032c8132f0ded68eaafc9f46f28cdf83c840554311be84eff5522919b184e2/ezgif-5-eafbb9b8f233.gif" data-mid="57047640" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/88032c8132f0ded68eaafc9f46f28cdf83c840554311be84eff5522919b184e2/ezgif-5-eafbb9b8f233.gif" /> <img width="5400" height="3600" width_o="5400" height_o="3600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b649faf8a1007feae13f010191af420bfa64f61a6b90e92f4dee01b33d69fe93/GL_MCNY_What-Counts_2019_049.jpg" data-mid="57052755" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b649faf8a1007feae13f010191af420bfa64f61a6b90e92f4dee01b33d69fe93/GL_MCNY_What-Counts_2019_049.jpg" /> <img width="600" height="600" width_o="600" height_o="600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5bd96f68cf50efb5ef648dd1e9dc8e8932d95cceada7d4e534e742f053b40cea/ezgif-5-8b2fa1e2cd9a.gif" data-mid="57047838" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/5bd96f68cf50efb5ef648dd1e9dc8e8932d95cceada7d4e534e742f053b40cea/ezgif-5-8b2fa1e2cd9a.gif" /> <img width="1015" height="1207" width_o="1015" height_o="1207" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f6ebe510f90a73f00a62933f2e56aa5b66879f5bf8b11c5431f7d6795867b20d/photo.jpg" data-mid="57052786" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f6ebe510f90a73f00a62933f2e56aa5b66879f5bf8b11c5431f7d6795867b20d/photo.jpg" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/The-Digital-in-Architecture Sat, 07 Dec 2019 18:27:37 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/The-Digital-in-Architecture text&nbsp; The Digital in Architecture “The Digital in Architecture: Then, Now and in the Future” is a special report produced by SPACE10, IKEA’s research and design lab, that looks at the ways in which innovations in digital tools for design and fabrication in architecture have contributed to the built environment today. The visualization for the report that explores the history of buildings, movements and tools that influenced this shift towards the digital. Full project details︎ Made with Processing, Illustrator, InDesign, and AfterEffects, November 2019 <img width="3000" height="1870" width_o="3000" height_o="1870" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4c056d0c99e99f9921cfd29af292c410b280d18021e882e02d713f82571817ac/GL_SPACE10_01.jpg" data-mid="58065260" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4c056d0c99e99f9921cfd29af292c410b280d18021e882e02d713f82571817ac/GL_SPACE10_01.jpg" /><img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/364ca26a53c124bc6f501cc4f998afbbccd2d126e58cf97bfffe543839223555/GL_SPACE10_10.jpg" data-mid="58065266" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/364ca26a53c124bc6f501cc4f998afbbccd2d126e58cf97bfffe543839223555/GL_SPACE10_10.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="1467" width_o="3000" height_o="1467" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/dc81c298ac2a26868cff5bbcfb60a613df9102fd68e3e06cea7e4becf007259b/GL_SPACE10_03.jpg" data-mid="58065261" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/dc81c298ac2a26868cff5bbcfb60a613df9102fd68e3e06cea7e4becf007259b/GL_SPACE10_03.jpg" /><img width="1480" height="833" width_o="1480" height_o="833" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2771a77f59b0e49e5f1e7ba361ecf66fb258b0940fc511eb6e68fd59b643d8a4/GL_SPACE10_04.jpg" data-mid="58065262" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2771a77f59b0e49e5f1e7ba361ecf66fb258b0940fc511eb6e68fd59b643d8a4/GL_SPACE10_04.jpg" /><img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1351e34b60fe427890a7d11dab6a07f2b21d04f689cd575f06b20c9a0f982b6a/GL_SPACE10_06.jpg" data-mid="58065264" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1351e34b60fe427890a7d11dab6a07f2b21d04f689cd575f06b20c9a0f982b6a/GL_SPACE10_06.jpg" /> <img width="3000" height="2001" width_o="3000" height_o="2001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e0acf422d2f23e8b111d71298c00d76acd4614de88ac45a08e5c93cf6810d34f/GL_SPACE10_07.jpg" data-mid="58065265" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e0acf422d2f23e8b111d71298c00d76acd4614de88ac45a08e5c93cf6810d34f/GL_SPACE10_07.jpg" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/Dialogue-in-Classic-Literature Mon, 06 Jan 2020 01:42:28 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/Dialogue-in-Classic-Literature <img width="2155" height="1684" width_o="2155" height_o="1684" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/850e5f33256cec059ab26b164ea6cb9363d77bff4f37851bfba834e4d000a17f/dialogue2.jpeg" data-mid="57795903" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/850e5f33256cec059ab26b164ea6cb9363d77bff4f37851bfba834e4d000a17f/dialogue2.jpeg" /> Dialogue in Classic Literature As a fan of classic literature, I was curious how frequently authors use dialogue in their novels. Using a python script that counts the number of words inbetween quotation marks and then dividing that number by the total number of words in the book, I calculated and visualized the average conversation proportion for 100 books. Medium article︎ Made with Processing, Illustrator, and InDesign. Collaborated with Derek Miller, April 2016 <img width="633" height="1323" width_o="633" height_o="1323" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/653ac59b7815f655d3ac24efbf11c0c25242528f34aef213c1f6412e799cb42a/dialogue.jpeg" data-mid="57795902" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/633/i/653ac59b7815f655d3ac24efbf11c0c25242528f34aef213c1f6412e799cb42a/dialogue.jpeg" /> <img width="1100" height="1348" width_o="1100" height_o="1348" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f70581d06ed516a6c3a9a390d3287ecbdf9c22246fbad364b5d5ea0b8577fbb8/02_convo.jpg" data-mid="57795901" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f70581d06ed516a6c3a9a390d3287ecbdf9c22246fbad364b5d5ea0b8577fbb8/02_convo.jpg" /><img width="1100" height="683" width_o="1100" height_o="683" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d093613c5ce6f3f1007f3e148a60c34b7c13d116e2c2800b8a7eacb198feb15a/dialogue3.jpeg" data-mid="57795904" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d093613c5ce6f3f1007f3e148a60c34b7c13d116e2c2800b8a7eacb198feb15a/dialogue3.jpeg" /> <img width="1100" height="926" width_o="1100" height_o="926" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e4cc18875dfd82dc374522ad8281246b8443d708f546967cb4c51169e4117eb8/dialogue4.jpeg" data-mid="57795905" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e4cc18875dfd82dc374522ad8281246b8443d708f546967cb4c51169e4117eb8/dialogue4.jpeg" /> https://sarahkaymiller.com/The-Moth-GrandSLAM Thu, 09 Jan 2020 00:10:27 +0000 Sarah Kay Miller https://sarahkaymiller.com/The-Moth-GrandSLAM <img width="1364" height="698" width_o="1364" height_o="698" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/424e5321f9aebd687af18e17b94598f6aebb69cf2bc0e10b09528c509a5dd1ed/themoth_crop_header.png" data-mid="58053980" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/424e5321f9aebd687af18e17b94598f6aebb69cf2bc0e10b09528c509a5dd1ed/themoth_crop_header.png" /> The Moth GrandSLAM For the ten captivating storytellers at The Moth’s GrandSLAM: Fuel to Fire show, I tried to capture raw emotion during each five-minute performance. Shapes and symbols represent the sentiment of both the storyteller and the audience. I drew these live during the show; each drawing simultanously reflects the data collection and visualization process.&nbsp; Drawn with Procreate, August 2019 <img width="2048" height="2048" width_o="2048" height_o="2048" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6cbfec9d4a1faf4672a608e699215340ea4afcb2b87951be054bf59f6e391c9a/themoth_0legend.PNG" data-mid="58053922" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6cbfec9d4a1faf4672a608e699215340ea4afcb2b87951be054bf59f6e391c9a/themoth_0legend.PNG" /> <img width="1000" height="1000" width_o="1000" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fa91ea85e693d6bfe7ea48ce98ba00537f3beff505a5b4f8a5ee2767c2a454af/themoth.gif" data-mid="58053924" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fa91ea85e693d6bfe7ea48ce98ba00537f3beff505a5b4f8a5ee2767c2a454af/themoth.gif" /> <img width="1668" height="2388" width_o="1668" height_o="2388" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ebde0f03719caf63ecf83181744fd53c45b57f3bbc6ea214e2fd4d7ed4aec4f8/themoth_full_rectangle.PNG" data-mid="58053923" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ebde0f03719caf63ecf83181744fd53c45b57f3bbc6ea214e2fd4d7ed4aec4f8/themoth_full_rectangle.PNG" />