Interesting posts from Information Aesthetics and Guy Kawasaki remind us how powerful graphic representation can be in grasping and remembering a conversation. Both posts refer to the work of Martha McGinnis, an illustrator that creates large-format sketches at conferences or think-tanks while the ideas unfold.
The result is a complex image that captures, clarifies, and connects a group’s discussion, and makes the ephemeral more tangible…which sounds much like the function of many forms of creative expression.
As it turns out, there’s an entire international society of ”Visual Practitioners,” as the discipline is known. And from my limited experience seeing it work (I attended a roundtable in early 2006 that had a visual practitioner sketching along), it’s a fascinating enhancement to the often wandering and short-lived insights of most group conversation processes.
For those particularly interested in the full range of visualization methods, Kawasaki links to this handy periodic table.
Great post, Andrew. Really interesting.
What a fantasic resource for visual representations. I just spent an hour rolling over every pop up in the periodic table. Thank you for comandeering my Friday night, Andrew. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a sexy idea graphic is worth a thousand pictures. Or at least a grant.