exploratory data visualization at harvard art museums

Beyond the Graphing Calculator: A Deep Dive into Data Visualization and Cultural Institutions

JESSICA MILBY, ELIZABETH BOLLWERK, JEFF STEWARD, NEVILLE VAKHARIA, ANGIE JUDGE

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Exploratory data visualization

Jeff StewardHarvard Art Museums

@jeffsstewardjeff_steward@harvard.edu

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Harvard Art Museums is a teaching museum at a research university

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We know a lot of stuff about our objects

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A snippet of the constellation of metadata connected to a single object

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The search interface on the Harvard Art Museums website

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Can we use data visualization as a means to…

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– explore collections in ways we didn’t think were possible

– push the boundaries of what we can do with cultural data

– change our perspective on how we think about using collections

– appeal to those that might not feel a connection to art museums

A set of visualizations for browsing the objects in the galleries

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An abstract representation of the colors found in objects in the collection

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A large time series rendered as an immersive data landscape

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A large time series rendered as an immersive data landscape

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Applying astronomical metaphors to render the collection as a series of solar systems

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Applying astronomical metaphors to render the collection as a series of solar systems

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Here are a few things to consider before diving in to data viz…

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– Know your data (at least a little bit)

– Know your biases (or at least recognize that you have some)

– Know your quirks

– Exploratory vs. explanatory visualization

– Data visualization is just another tool

Know what motivates you…

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Through research, teaching, professional training,

and public education, the museums strive to

advance the understanding and appreciation of art.

Programs encourage close looking at original works

of art, collaboration with campus and community

partners, and the production of new scholarship.

Thank you

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Play at http://hvrd.art/mcn-viz-2017