This article originally appeared in Issue 5 of Nightingale magazine. (Get your copy here!) This challenge is brought to you by data visualization artist Jessica Russo.
Challenge
Create a data visualization inspired by nature or the world around you. You can do this by mimicking natural patterns, architectural design (if you live in a city, like I do), or by simply drawing inspiration from the shapes, colors, and structures found in our world.
How to begin
- Observe: Spend time in nature and take note of patterns and structures you find. If you live in a city, consider of the infrastructure, architecture, animals and people around you. What colors catch your eye? Do any color schemes you see surprise you? If you’re unable to spend time outside, find interesting images and videos of landscapes, plants, animals, or geological formations online or in a library book.
- Identify: Look for recurring patterns in nature or your surroundings: honeycombs, spirals of shells or galaxies, the branching of trees, the symmetry (or asymmetry!) of leaves and flowers.
- Focus: Choose something that speaks to you: color, form, function, a specific element. It could be anything! I am fascinated by the colors that attract butterflies, turtle shell patterns, and tree rings.
Where to find inspiration
- Outside: Look out the window or spend time outside observing the world.
- Nature photographers: search out images taken by professionals and amateurs online.
- Art and design: Explore how artists and designers are inspired by nature in their work. Architect Antoni Gaudi used natural forms in his revelatory works, like Park Güell and the Sagrada Familia. Artist Georgia O’Keefe was known for her paintings of many natural forms: flowers, bones, shells, stones, mountains. Yayoi Kusama is fascinated by the infinite and uses polka dots in her art to capture the concept. She manipulates their size to show depth and texture.
- Nature documentaries: Find visual inspiration and inspiration from plants, animals, fungi, etc. by watching a documentary.
What data do I use?
- You don’t need to use data related to the environment, ecology, or geology, however, you can! You could use datasets related to weather patterns, climate change, animal migrations, plant growth, biodiversity, earthquakes, or volcanic activity.
- You could use personal data. You can collect your own data through observations, or gather data that is already being collected about you (think: Good Reads, the Health App steps counter, your calendar, your local weather).
- Consider how your data works with your chosen focus.
Examples:
My favorite radio host, Brian Lehrer, has a segment with an urban botanist every month. They prompted listeners to pick a tree and tweet a picture of it each month, which got me noticing the trees in my neighborhood. Recently, a huge tree on my block was cut down and I am fascinated by its rings and all the data they might reveal about the tree’s age, the climate conditions and environmental changes in the neighborhood over time, issues the tree had with insects, etc.
You could also find your next color palate from your surroundings. On a recent walk to Prospect Park for off leash hours with my dog, I was stopped in my tracks by some wildflowers in front of a Brooklyn Parks & Rec building.
Documentation:
- If you have made something three-dimensional (perhaps using something found in nature), take at least one high-res photo (at least 300 dpi) of the object and its legend on a neutral background.
- Explain Your Process: Document your steps from inspiration to final visualization. You can include sketches, data sources, and design decisions.
- Share Your Data: Provide the data sources you used or collected, along with any preprocessing steps.
- Describe Your Visualization: Write a brief description of your visualization, explaining how it is inspired by nature and what story it tells.
- Tools and Techniques: List the tools and techniques used to create your visualization, from data analysis to design software.
Let’s see your natural data! Send in one high-resolution image plus a 50-word description by FEBRUARY 28, 2025 (deadline extended!).
Jessica Russo
Jessica Russo works in data visualization at NRDC, where she crafts compelling visual narratives to drive policy changes.
Nightingale Editors
Our Nightingale editorial team currently consists of Alejandra Arevalo, William Careri, Jason Forrest, Elijah Meeks, and Teo Popescu. Reach us at Nightingale(at)Datavisualizationsociety.org
