Tech Project

Description of the challenges faced by the Tech Project

In the era of the so-called "post-truth society", it is becoming increasingly important to enabled (and encourage) people to understand data sources in an easily accessible form, while ensuring truthfulness and accuracy. Data Stories aims to understand: (a) whether people engage more with data that is made directly relevant to them; (b) whether people engage more with data through interaction; and (c) whether people will share data more often if sharability is built into the presentation. Data must entertain as well as inform, and excite as well as educate. Data Stories aims to explore the development of new ways of presenting data, including new types of visualisation, art installations, games, and storytelling. Data Stories will deliver the tools and guidance that community and civic groups need to achieve broader participation and support for their initiatives at local and national level, and empower artists, designers, statisticians, analysts, and journalists to communicate with data in inspiring, informative ways.

Brief description of technology

Data must entertain as well as inform, and excite as well as educate. Data Stories aims to explore the development of new ways of presenting data, including new types of visualisation, art installations, games, and storytelling. Data Stories will deliver the tools and guidance that community and civic groups need to achieve broader participation and support for their initiatives at local and national level, and empower artists, designers, statisticians, analysts, and journalists to communicate with data in inspiring, informative ways.

What the project is looking to gain from the collaboration and what kind of artist would be suitable

While there are no hard restrictions on the type of artist that should apply, we are keen to explore the impact of telling stories with data. These stories could be fiction, non-fiction, or a mixture of both, but should include some sort of generative or dynamic element, such that the story is driven by real-world data.

Resources available to the artist

The artist will be provided space and facilities to work (workstation, internet access, etc.) in the Web and Internet Science lab at the University of Southampton (UK). We will also provide access to interesting and relevant sources of data (through data.gov.uk, the Office for National Statistics, and the Open Data Institute), as well as travel budget.