As I mentioned in my Pecha Kucha (I think), this research project has brought up some interesting dynamics for me between analog/digital, low-fi/high-tech.
Zine culture is very much about process, about the craft of making. The zine artifact is tactile, tangible — a physical cut-and-paste kind of thing. As I was working on designing prototype for my very high-tech interactive map, it did cross my mind that the project seemed at odds with that aspect of zine culture. I worried that it was too slick, too flash-y, lacking a sense of human touch. But it was hard to imagine the possibility of visualizing such complex data in a way that wasn’t impersonal in that way.
My visit to the zine archive at ABC No Rio totally blew me away for that reason. Well-designed database mapping systems don’t have to be slick, interactive, and high-tech to be effective. Check it out:
The wallpaper guide offers a clear legend for navigating the room
pattern legend shows holdings by category
... and also by editorial style
This wallpaper plasters the walls of the archive, so that the visitor only has to look around them to get a sense of the contents of the room.
Pretty awesome I think. It conveys a lot of information in a way that makes so much sense to me considering the material at hand. It reminded me of this great post on the DIY Cartography blog about mapping multivariate data with texture. I’m not sure what the implications are yet for my project– but its definitely got me thinking about the different possibilities of pattern/texture, and also the potential applications of analog or lo-fi components. Maybe I will make a zine legend or something to go along with my interactive map!
ABC No Rio also has a more traditional digital cataloguing system (I think they use filemaker), which also seems really organized and easy to use
Many thanks to ABC No Rio for letting me invade the space and take lots of pictures there. Thanks especially to Eric, who was really patient answering my many questions!
Thanks ABC no rio zine library!
2 Comments
1 shannon wrote:
This is fantastic, Jen. Of course there’s only so much we can do to tailor the overall URT interface to match the “character” of its individual projects — but maybe there’s potential for the creation of project-specific frameworks or “shells” (for lack of a better term.) We should definitely talk to Rory, Jess, and Jane about how we might build in flexibility for such options.
2 julianapereira wrote:
This is so interesting Jen! This archive sounds like one of those places you need to “be in” to fully grasp its usefulness and mapping abilities–it all looks a bit confusing otherwise! However, I hope we’ll be able to recreate something similar in URT.